


Give us a little Love

by Aloyses_Mindscape



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern: No Powers, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Consensual Underage Sex, Emma's a pain in the ass, F/M, Felix is in love with his best friend, M/M, Older Man/Younger Man, Peter has a fucking weird job, Peter is blind about Felix's love for him, Peter understands everyone felling except his own, Rape/Non-con Elements, Rumple has a library, Teen/Adult, Underage Drinking, Underage Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-08
Updated: 2020-03-22
Packaged: 2020-04-12 12:21:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 5
Words: 27,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19131943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aloyses_Mindscape/pseuds/Aloyses_Mindscape
Summary: "Sometimes there are words that say nothing, but looks that say all. It is not the face that strikes, but the expressions. It is not the body that we like, but the way it moves. It is often not the physical appearance that attracts us, but it's a person's ways of doing things. Mental attraction is much more powerful than physical, you don't let go of a mind even when you close your eyes. "------------------I could not keep putting you in first place if I wanted to survive this whole situation! --And I took care of myself so that I could survive too! Because he is my salvation, my... my "safe place" when I can't feel "at home", when everything else seems to collapse on me... And all of this makes you angry... What, what do bother you so much? Whether I went after the person I need to feel good, or that the person I need is not you?-





	1. Talk dirty to me

**Author's Note:**

> Please note that English isn't my first language and I probably made mistakes sigh.  
> I hope you'll enjoy the same my story~

The wall-mounted clock was broken. It had to be.

It couldn't have been more than 5 minutes since he last looked at it. The hands seemed to advance by one and go back three, in a continuous loop that brought time to seem infinite.  
The silence was such that he could hear the breaths of the other boys around him.  
Someone at the bottom was compulsively pressing the pen, going in time with the hands of the clock, creating an effect similar to the scanning of a bomb. The boy next to him rubbed his feet on the floor, letting himself go to a disconsolate sigh, looking around desperately for a moment before returning to lay his eyes on the paper in front of him.  
The young man made just a grimace, rereading quickly what he had written, before getting up with the sheet in his hand and with a calm and rhythmic step, reach the desk, laying the check under the nose of the teacher, who looked up at him.

-Have you finish? Are you sure you don't want to double-check Peter?- The woman asked, just glancing at the rest of the class who, partly in panic and partly a little more confident, was still doing the job.

-Yeah, can I go for a ride while they finish?- The boy asked, slipping his hands into the pockets of his school uniform jacket that, unfastened, showed the white shirt below, closed on the neck by the tie.  
The hair of a hazelnut color were slightly messy and some strands fell on his eyes of a green forest colour. He barely smiled at the teacher as he asked that question, certain that she would not refuse.

-Okay, but don't wander around too much and don't get into trouble, or they'll be complaining to me you know, see not to make disasters ...- the woman answered taking in hand the test of the boy while starting to correct it.  
Peter sighed with relief, immediately leaving the classroom, closing the door behind him and walking down the corridor while, with one hand, he loosened his tie.  
He hated that stupid uniform, whenever he had worn it he seemed to choke. He took the stairs to the right, climbing to the roof terrace, needing a little air. As soon as he opened the heavy panic door, a gust of air hit him, ruffling his hair and making his jacket flap slightly.

He advanced to the iron railing that bordered the edge of the roof, rusted here and there, resting his arms on it, barely hiding his face and holding back a yawn. He was terribly tired, the night before he had returned "home" at an hallucinatory time, it would have been 3am and something ... luckily everyone was already asleep at the Institute and the Guardian was not there.  
At least he had earned something, well, a little more than just something, but he knew that among the other boys and himself those thousand pounds wouldn't last long.  
”I'll have to find a new customer to add to those I already have if I want to pull up more stuff at once ...” he thought as he ran a hand over his face, then immediately pulled himself up when he heard the stairway door open.

-I almost hoped you weren't here, do you know Pan?- Said a boy, his hands tucked into the pockets of his trousers, his tone ironic.

-You owe me money Dean, I'm patient, but I've been leaving you in peace for quite a while ... I need that money, and I want it now- Peter said, turning to him crossing his arms over his chest, serious look fixed on the other boy.  
Boy who snorted and then pulled a bundle of bills out of one pocket and passed it to the other.

-Sure make you use your fucking tongue like only you know costs mh?- Dean said almost angrily, while the young man checked that there were all his one hundred and fifty pounds, and then bind them with a rubber band in pieces of five, putting them in the inside pocket of uniform.

-Oh yes ... let me do what you want has a price. But you are part of the circle of Dad's wealthy children, aren't you? This is at least half your monthly allowance,- Peter replied with a cheeky smirk as he started for the door, passing Dean without even looking at him, while the bell rang out in the building.

-This doesn't change the fact that you're a manipulative bitch!- the boy shouted after him, refraining from throwing something at him.

-I heard worse! - the other quietly said, opening the door and going down into the garden, merging into the stream of the other students who ran to meet in the usual groups that relied on nothing but the social ladder. He passed in front of the group of third-rate girls who, seeing him, began to giggle stupidly and make comments of appreciation, well audible from that distance.  
He ignored them completely, barely noticing Wendy Darling who, leaning against the wall of the school along with those who must have been her friends, was incinerating him with her eyes as he passed. He turned partly towards her, giving her a brazen greeting with his hand, smiling amiably, triggering an immediate reaction; if it hadn't been for two of the girl's friends, who held her back, she would have slings on him probably giving him a loud slap.

The boy chuckled softly, reaching his friend who was beckoning him from under the huge oak planted on the east side of the garden.  
Felix Sharp, nineteen, almost twenty now, of a class ahead of him, failed twice. The hair of a wheat blond slightly long and disheveled, the face with sharp features marked by a scar, could be defined practically as his only friend. When Pan reached him he was smoking a cigarette.

-Do you know that if they catch you they'll suspend you, right?- Peter asked rhetorically approaching him with his hands in his pockets, leaning with a shoulder on the trunk of the tree.

-Come on! You know as well as me that the profs don't give a damn about anything! You should know it well that they only care about the votes and nothing else. When they caught you making up with Wendy in the bathrooms they just punished you for a week and that says a lot!- Felix said with a slight grin looking at him sideways.

-Yeah, she hasn't forgiven me yet, do you know?- said Peter in a mournfully sad tone,

-Yes, I noticed that she looks like she would gladly set you on fire, shaking a bottle of water under your nose and then drink it. But she has no faults at all, you've done her for weeks and then you came out with the fact that you're fucking gay- laughed the other handing him a cigarette, which his friend declined with a wave of his hand.

-Yes, I am a fag and I told you a thousand times that I do not smoke at school Felix- he answered by slightly raising an eyebrow, raising his eyes to the sky.

-You can not smoke here, but this evening as a good fag and bisex as we are, I'll take you to a nice place to party, since it's Friday and we won't have school for the next two days- the blond said, surrounding the shoulders of the other with one arm pulling him to himself.

-We go drink then?- Asked the boy with a smug little smile.

-Just don't finish like the last time, I had to take you home because you were drunk, you're my friend but seeing you throw up is not a good show you know?-

-Can't I get drunk even on special occasions now? It was my birthday!- Peter replied.

-Do not say bullshit! Your birthday is in June and we are at the beginning of October!-

-It was my non-birthday, so that's okay?- he said, moving away and throwing a piece of waste paper at him that he had in his pocket from who knows how long.

-Who the fuck are you? The Mad Hatter? The truth is that you like to drink and that's it! Ah ... seventeen and already an alcoholist...- Felix said in a falsely dejected tone, shaking his head, -I really failed with you son!- he murmured, running a hand over his face.

\- And shut up, you fool - Peter snorted with an annoyed grimace, - for the evening I can tell you ok I have to see first if the Guardian is at home or if I have ass and he will stay away until Monday, that already once I made a mess and I don't want to keep ice on my face again for days- he said as they walked into the classroom, the break was over.

\- Just try to be careful with that guy ok? - Felix said, finally giving him a serious look, the tone that didn't allow replies. The boy nodded with a slight sigh, pausing a second before entering his class.

-I call you around 7pm, if I don't, it means we do nothing, ok? - he suggested moving a lock of hair out of his eyes. Felix gave him a nod before disappearing into his class, imitated almost immediately by his friend.

\---------------------

As soon as he set foot in the house a couple of the younger kids ran into him with a smile, happy to see him. So their Guardian was not there ... usually when the man was present at home none of them dared to put their nose out of their room, terrified of the possibility of disturbing him and being punished accordingly.  
Malcolm Shadow's punishments were famous for not being light at all, Peter knew something about it ... When he got home after the school called home for the mess with Wendy ... well ... just say he had had a horrible appearance for at least a couple of weeks, the left cheeckbone bruised, the lower lip broken.

The boy remembered that he had not dared to take a breath while that man raised his hands on him, and this said a lot about how much he was terrified by Shadow; he was the one who, even in the most delicate and risky situations, did not exempt himself from saying what he thought, repeating and throwing digs, that time he had failed to say anything, the voice that did not want to know to go out, his lips closed in fear.  
Meanwhile, the man struck him violently, shouting that he had no respect, that he should not allow himself to embarrass him in that way since it was only thanks to him that Pan and the others were not on the street but lived in a house.  
Peter had almost found the courage to say something, almost. In his mind he had laughed bitterly. He had never had a real home, like many of the other kids who were there, found on the stairs of the Institute when he barely had a year, but he was sure that he couldn't and he didn't want to call it home.  
Home is not where to feel trapped, with the fear of making a bad end to the slightest mistake. For the moment, however, it was the only place where he could stay.

-Leave yourself off, pests that you are nothing else! I am not a damned pillow learn it once and for all! - he said in a tone between annoyance and amusement while he tore off the kids, who let him do it chuckling and running away, amused. They loved "torturing him" that way, knowing full well that despite everything the boy yelled at him every time, he worried about them, he loved him in his own way.

Peter huffed as he ran his hand through his hair before heading for his room down the hall, his school bag thrown over his shoulder badly.  
Here, his room was the most decent thing to be in that damned Institute.

He opened the door softly, entering and throwing the bag in the corner next to the table on which, in a decidedly precarious balance, there were several books. Books that also filled the small library next to the bed, positioned in a small alcove, with an attached window.  
The whole room was in shades of green and dark brown, which shone slightly under the light of the pale sun coming in through the window. He closed the door behind him, stretching his eyes, closing his eyes for a second, the tiredness due to the various nights when he had spent the wee hours starting to be heard.  
Mentally he looked at his commitments, sighing with relief, realizing that he had no client that evening; of course, this meant no gain and indeed, at that point an expense, since it was almost certain he would go out with Felix at that point, but maybe it was better that way ... He opened his eyes and glanced at the school bag, trying to remember if he would have had any tests soon or not.

Finally he gave up and, not without a slight puff, he moved towards the bag, bending and rummaging in it, taking out the little notebook, now almost destroyed, on which the tasks were marked. He let out a slight smile, noticing that nothing was marked for the next few days, pulling himself up and throwing the object back into his backpack.

"Better this way, now I don't have the strength and tomorrow and the day after tomorrow I certainly won't want ..." he thought as he passed by the table, grabbing the book that was on top of the pile, in which he had stuck a bookmark long ago, in the hope of , sooner or later, being able to continue and finish it.

He let himself fall dead on the bed, opening the book, picking up where he had last stopped, aware that he didn't know how long he would be able to enjoy the peace, his eyes and his head getting heavier and heavier man as the minutes passed relentlessly.  
In the end he fell asleep, still with the book in his hands, lying sprawled on the covers, his hair falling slightly over his eyes, his pale skin barely illuminated by the faint light that came in from outside and that, as the hours passed, dropped more and more until the red and gold sunset shone over the glass, while it fell behind the great buildings of London and the lights for the city began to light up, illuminating it like a jewel.

The boy was awakened by someone knocking on the door, probably one of the boys, Shadow would never have made trouble entering.

\- Go ahead, whoever you are ... and I hope that there is a real problem for waking me up ...- he said sitting up and rubbing his face, putting the book aside, flying voluntarily over the fact that it was less than 19 few minutes and if they had not woken him up he would have continued to sleep not calling Felix and unintentionally postponing the exit, which he had badly needed.  
The door was opened and one of the younger boys, he must have been around seven or eight, entered hesitantly.

-Peter ... we are hungry ... but there is nothing already done in the fridge ... we don't know how to do ...- he murmured looking at him with his blue eyes imploring, in an expression of irresistible supplication. The boy raised his eyes to the sky with a sigh, rising to his feet, overtaking him, starting down the corridor, headed for the kitchen.

\- Come on ... I'm going out tonight, but apparently before I have to feed you ... how would you do if I weren't there, eh? - he said while the child followed him, entering the kitchen, where apparently a bomb exploded, it was the only option for the mess he was seeing; the fridge was half empty, and what was missing was on the table, scattered here and there, while some of the older boys, Michael, Jean and Tom, racked their brains on the laptop, on which they had, incredibly thought Peter, looked for how they can do hamburgers.

-I can't believe you don't know how to do them! You have more or less all three fourteen years ...- he exclaimed exasperated as he went to work, helped by the three, who had noticed him, blushed in shame and muttered a few words of apology, -you'll have to learn to cook something sooner or later that you don't prepare simply in the microwave ...- he said while with one hand he blew the meat in the pan and with the other he took the cell phone.

-Shadow said something about when he comes back? Do you know anything?- he asked the boys, giving them a serious look, he wanted to be sure of what he was doing before making mistakes and getting into trouble.

-He called first! He said that at least he won't be here until Tuesday, and we have to not make trouble or he shows us,- Jean said as he made the burger sandwiches, his black hair ruffled, his gray eyes fixed on the counter kitchen.

-Well ... listen, I'm going out tonight, I'm not sure what time I'm back, you have free access to TV and internet, don't go out and don't blow up the house, you three who are the greatest you have to make to sleep the others at a certain time ok? I don't want to go back and see someone still standing like the last time clear? - he said, then dial Felix's number and warn him that they had the go-ahead.

He finished cooking dinner for everyone, leaving Tom and Michael the task of putting everything in place, going into the room to change, after all he had fallen asleep wearing his school uniform and it certainly wasn't the best choice to show up in a gay nightclub, not if he wanted to do something at least.

He put on tight black jeans, converses of the same color and a dark green half-sleeved shirt, putting his brown leather bracelets on his wrists that he now had from who knows how long, slipping his black leather jacket over his shirt, checking to have enough money in the pockets, along with the cell phone and the keys of the Institute.

He rushed out, quickly reaching Felix, who was waiting for him not far from there, on the street corner and who, as usual, was smoking yet another cigarette. Since it was still early and that neither of them had dined, they retired to a pub to eat, remaining there chatting until past 21 'o clock.

-So this place? Will you take me or not? Then are you sure they'll let me in? You can pass for a twenty-one year but not me ...- Peter said finishing his cola and putting his glass on the table with a light thud.

-Don't worry, anyone can come in, it's a very open place, they won't cause you age problems. It's evening, just think about having fun, possibly without getting too drunk - Felix reassured him from behind his mug of beer.

\- Perfect, but I can't promise you anything, who knows, maybe this is the right time that I find myself someone-

-As not, and fairies exist, but if you are one who is never with a person for more than two weeks, three maximum- the blond teased him by shaking his head and laughing. The chestnut shrugged, after all the other was right, he could not say anything.

-You will see, the Storybrooke Night will drive you crazy-

\------------------

As soon as the boys set foot in the room the light smoke surrounded them, which, together with the lights of iridescent colors but not too blinding, made the atmosphere sensual and inviting. The place was full of boys and girls who had fun, some dancing, some drinking at the bar, some lying or sitting on the sofas adjacent to the walls while pop music expanded into the air. Towards the back of the room was the stage with poles for the strippers.

-Wow, I have to say that you took us fully this time my friend- said Pan turning with a grin towards the other, who threw a friendly punch on his shoulder.

\- I ALWAYS take it, don't say bullshit. Just do me a favor, okay? See if you can find me at the end of the evening, I don't feel like looking for you- he told him looking at him with a smile.

-Do not worry worse than a mother Felix, I may not be the best well behaved guy around, but I always keep my promises! - he said disappearing into the crowd, headed for the bar.

It was time to really start having fun.

\----------------

How long was it there now, an hour, two? He no longer remembered it.  
He only knew that he was definitely having fun.  
He had drunk very little, for his own standards at least, danced in the crowd and had even lemoned a couple of boys now not well identifiable because of the smoke and the noise that reigned in the room. Peter was now leaning back against the wall, in one hand he still held the glass with some remnants of his own, yet another drink inside, barely noticing the show that had meanwhile begun on stage, the look lost, the mind empty .

Only when the music suddenly changed and a man climbed onto the stage, which had to be the fulcrum of that performance, his eyes move to the stage, becoming more attentive all of a sudden. The vision that appeared before him made him gasp.

The young man, he would not have been more than twenty-five, was wearing extremely tight black leather jeans, which made the bulge stand out and, he noticed when he turned around for a moment, wrapped his butt perfectly. Sitting down that, Pan had to admit, was not bad. His chest was now naked (his jacket lay on the floor on the stage) the muscles that were not exaggerated, scarcely marked by the studded straps that held up his trousers.

Above his dark hair he had a police cap that was also black. But what struck the boy was his eyes, so bright blue that they took his breath away and confused him more than he was willing to admit.

He found himself staring at him with desire, hypnotized by his movements and the lights that created games on his body, the mind that had left for the tangent (let's also say tangential) while imagining things that would make a church burn.

Suddenly the unexpected happened.

The stripper turned, chaining his eyes with his own, opening up a provocative smile. He had definitely noticed how he looked at him. He descended from the stage with an agile leap, also surpassing the crowd, which made him astonished as the man strode in his own direction.  
He didn't even have time to think about anything, that he found the other's hot lips on his own, his hand in his hair, their tongues clashing, while involving him in a kiss that of chaste didn't even have the name , while the man's body was rubbing sensuously against his for a few moments, before he pulled away. The crowd around them, especially the girls, shouted and whistled in assent.  
Peter looked at him, his cheeks flushed, his breath short, still in a daze, his body flooded with heat beyond the human limit.

-Happy that you enjoyed my show,- the man muttered sensually, winking at him before walking to the backstage, leaving the boy wondering what the hell had happened.


	2. Power...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Therefore, Peter and Felix definitely like going out to celebrate and drink, but, as we have seen, life sometimes has fun with us when we least expect it.  
> This story can be more or less summarized with the song "how to be an heartbreaker" by Marina and the diamonds. When I realized this I started laughing.
> 
> I left several easter eggs around the story and its chapters, write me in the comments if you noticed them!

The noise that, for just an instant, the one after their kiss, had disappeared, resumed filling the room, like the water poured into the bottle fills it in every little corner. The music was raised even more and the jubilants resumed slowly filling the dance floor.Peter hardly noticed, still slightly red in the face, his ears whistling. He just shook his head, trying to make a little clarity in his mind. A few seconds passed before he realized that inside there he would never be successful. He looked around, trying to figure out where the exit was, or at least the bathrooms. He felt the eyes of everyone on him and if he normally liked it, in that case the situation bothered him heavily, as he had just made the figure of the idiot and inexperienced boy he was NOT (and he was keen to reiterate the not). Finally, like a glimmer of hope, he saw Felix coming towards him in the crowd, but he could not make out his expression.

-Don't tell me that you really let yourself do such a thing by an unknown stripper- he said looking at him, holding back a scornful laugh. Peter looked at him arching an eyebrow in his, still protected by copyright, expression, which in that case meant something between "who the hell cares about that man's work?" and "you're having fun? Soon you will not laugh more if you continue."

\- He caught me off guard okay? I didn't think such a thing would happen, not even wanting it - he answered with a slight grimace, slipping his hands into the pockets of his jeans, - do you happen to know where the bathrooms are or if there is, I don't know, a terrace? I'm starting to feel suffocated in here, I have to disconnect for a couple of minutes at least- he asked while the other looked at him with a surprised expression. 

-Are not you feeling good? Do you want to go home? - he asked him a little worried, placing a hand on his shoulder. A hand that was abruptly pushed away from the other's, who glared at him, his green eyes veiled by a slight dark shadow.

-I'm fine, who do you think you're dealing with? With a brat? I just need to go out for a second and if you can't help me and you want to be here to make useless comments, you can also leave - he replied acidly, returning to lean his back against the wall behind him.

-If you turn to your right and go straight, there are stairs leading up to the terrace ...- Felix answered with a sigh. He hadn't been upset, he couldn't. With all the times that the other replied with digs, sometimes not even slightly, or in a sarcastic tone ... it was his character and nobody could do anything about it. He saw him barely nod and then disappear into the crowd, in the direction he had indicated, his lean but well-defined physique wrapped in his tight-fitting clothes.

\-------------------

Like that morning at school, he let his hair ruffle by the cold wind that had begun to blow in those days, drawing a deep sigh. Fortunately there was no one. At that moment he didn't need an audience and probably wouldn't come back downstairs any time soon. He sat on the ground, one knee to his chest, his arm resting on it, passing a hand wearily over his face, hoping that the headache he was now feeling overwhelmingly faded soon. He must have drunk more than he thought...  
He shivered slightly with cold. Probably it was not a good idea to expose himself to the cold in that way, his jacket had remained in the wardrobe of the place, especially since he was sweating because of the climate inside ... and also something else, to which he was trying not to think. He snorted annoyed. Annoyed and offended to tell the truth. Although that was definitely a nice kiss, damn if he had been! He could still feel the man's warm lips on his, their tongues brushing like their bodies, even if the contact had been brief... As soon as he realized which way his thoughts were going, he shook his head passing a hand through his hair, pulling it back slightly.

Letting himself be fooled around like that ... he had made a pathetic figure, in front of a large number of people, moreover! He clenched his hands into fists as he felt the irritation rising. All this called revenge, and he called it loudly, moreover, with the help of a microphone and an amplifier put to the nth degree. He let his gaze wander over the buildings and lights of London; in one way or another he would have resumed his revenge on the man who had succeeded that night, no one knows how, to overpower him, and he would have done it his way.

\------------------

The sun filtered slightly through the half-closed curtains, lightly flooding the bed. Peter rolled over with an annoyed moan, covering his face with one arm, trying to protect his eyes from the light, curling up better among the covers. He heard someonegiggle, not far from where he was, and turning wearily on his side, half-closing his eyes, he saw Felix who, sitting on a makeshift bed, looked at him with a smirk. The boy snorted,

-What are you laughing at, huh?- he asked, his voice slightly kneaded, covered over his shoulders by the blanket.

-Oh nothing nothing, I was just realizing that you too are mortal in the morning when you wake up, like all of us normal people. Your hair seems to have been treated by a mad barber - he said, leaning his back against the wall with a spark of derision in his eyes. He had not even finished the sentence that the other's pillow hit him in the face.

-Idiot...- Pan said, sitting up, beginning to think that what had happened that night was just a dream. He ran a hand over his face, trying to get up and pull his hair back slightly, but stopped, feeling an odor he didn't know, a mix of sea and sage scent, mixed with the smell of a cigarette. The last was certainly Felix, but the other ...He stiffened, understanding that unfortunately it hadn't been a dream, but he had really made the figure of the naive boy in front of everyone.

-Sorry, explain to me why I smell about you? - he asked his friend, turning to look at him a little badly. He saw the other slightly falter.

-I didn't want to sleep on the sofa because it's small, so I tried to sleep with you since you have a bed wide enough for two, but then in your sleep you dropped me practically three times in a row and I gave up.- with a snort pointing at the grounded cushions on which he had slept.

-You know I always told you I don't want someone in my bed to sleep with me. I need my space just because I know that in my sleep I move a lot- Peter retorted throwing his legs off the bed with tiredness, just holding back a yawn.

-I realized it at my expense ... Anyway it's late ... it's almost lunch time, you want to have the same breakfast or ...? - the blonde asked looking at him while the other got up and started undressing without problems ; the green shirt fell to the ground, followed soon after by the black jeans, which landed with a dull thud because of the belt buckle, the bracelets ended up on the bed, leaving the boy wearing only the tight black boxers.

\- Meanwhile I take a quick shower ... otherwise I will spend all day in a state of drowsiness, then we think - he said opening the door and going into the bathroom, locking himself in with a key. He opened the shower water as he finished undressing, slipping under the jet with a grumble of dissent. No hot water. The most that this thing could achieve was a warm temperature and for him who, especially when the cold period began to arrive, loved the sensation of boiling water on his skin, it was almost torture.He washed himself quickly, slipping on his bathrobe and vigorously rubbing a towel over his hair as he walked back to his room with a shuffling step, his mind on other things.

 

-I think I'm going to make pancakes ... I want sweet stuff, in case it's evening we order pizza if you want it,- he told Felix, who gave him a faint smile as he, unseen, watched him as he freed himself from the bathrobe, remaining naked, his back to him.

-Since when can you make them? - he asked, immediately averting his gaze when the other turned to him, putting on his boxers and then his sweatpants.

-Since when one morning I woke up in chemical hunger because of the joint from the night before, I don't remember now who gave it to me, pretending to be a cigarette, counting on the fact that at that time I didn't understand anything, and were finished both the biscuits and the cereals, also any other decent thing o eat and I was about to collapse due to the cramps of hunger- he answered putting on his heavy sweatshirt.

-And ... my self-esteem is crap again, explain to me how you can be cool even dressed as a tramp? -

-Because my good looks are equally proportional to my sarcasm, Felix-

-What is it that doesn't surprise me?- The blond said with a sigh as he stood up, brushing his hair away from his face. Peter held back an amused laugh.

-Come on, I'm afraid those brats have messed up in the kitchen,- he said, opening the bedroom door and walking toward the kitchen with a tired step, running a hand through his still-damp hair.

-Won't you end up getting sick if you stay like that?- the boy asked, looking at him while the other man took the pan and warmed it on the stove while he took out everything he needed. From the next room you could hear the TV in the background, evidently some of the kids had camped on the couch, leaving the dirty cups in the sink, the cereal boxes open on the table. The young man snorted, he'll certainly not clean everything.

-Don't worry, I don't get sick so easily , I'll be fine,- he said as he moved yet another pancake ready from the pan to the plate. The gestures came automatically, naturally, to tell the truth he was not even seriously thinking about what he was doing.

-If you get sick then I swear I'll put it down for months - said the other, - do you want me to go tell them to come and settle down? - he asked looking at the mess that reigned in the room with a grimace. The boy opened in a smirk,

-Oh yes, tell them that if they didn't fix everything when I finished here, they won't have pizza tonight,- he said, -and I'm almost done-. Not even a minute after Felix had gone there, the boys made their lightning appearance in the kitchen starting to clean up what they had done. The boy could not suppress a smile of satisfaction; it was so nice to make others do what he wanted!

-This evening then we stay here eating in front of the TV ... but there is nothing decent about it ...-

\- Oh no! There are Doctor Who and Hannibal! Don't you dare say that there is nothing interesting - Pan took it by glaring at it.

-You know, sometimes you really are a fucking TV addicted Peter-

\-------------------

The sky outside the library did not herald anything good; it was dark gray, traversed here and there by clouds that seemed almost black, surely full of torrential rain that would come down shortly thereafter. Peter just snorted, getting up from one of the chairs in the room, making her rub lightly on the floor, closing the book he had finished, heading for the shelves with the intent of putting it in its place and finding another one. He had to take it with both arms; given its size, still as the volume of the Bible, the "Chronicles of Narnia" had a considerable weight. He went to the fantasy section, walking quietly among the enormous shelves that, built in dark carved wood, stood almost to the immense barrel ceiling. He had noticed these details the first time he had set foot there, two years before, thanks to his passion for art history, which had often led him to spend a few hours in the afternoon, especially when winter was approaching, as in that moment and time referred to being indoors, inside the British Museum. A couple of times he had mentioned to Felix the request to be accompanied, but the other had always reiterated that he already had the balls full of that kind of thing because of the school and he didn't want to put up with them even in the afternoon when they were free from the commitments . So he ended up wandering alone, his hands buried in the pockets of his jeans, through the enormous corridors of the museum, getting lost in looking at the various paintings in fascination, looking for the smallest details. The librarian, Mr. Gold, gave him a careful look, noting that he had replaced the huge book.

-Already finished" Mr. "Pan?- He asked with a playful note in his affable voice, his light brown hair gently framing his face with particular features, his dark eyes fixed on the boy while, with a book in his hand, dressed in trousers dark and an ivory-white shirt, he went towards him with a slight smile.

-"Already". It took me a whole week to finish it - the boy specified as he turned to the man, leaning with his hips on the edge that ran through all the shelves, about thirty cm wide, served as a table to lay books, if there were many, as you took them or put them back in their place. Gold let out a slight laugh,

\- Well, some people take weeks if not even months, so I think you can feel satisfied that you read it in such a short time - he pointed it out as the boy crossed his arms over his chest.

\- Now you're looking for something new I guess, something that is at the same height, if not higher. Am I right? - he asked, looking at him sideways, while with a fine and elegant handwriting he marked on his register that the book had been returned.

\- You always seem to know what people are looking for and tell them where they can find it. Almost as if you had a magic that makes you understand people. It's something really fascinating, "Peter said, tilting his head slightly to one side, his gaze, between the curious and the interested, fixed on the man in front of him, who without raising his eyes from his register, sighed slightly.

-You are very good with words, incredibly you can get people to the point you want. Are you dangerous in a way you know, kid? - Gold said looking up, staring at him with a note of curiosity in his eyes.

\- Let's not exaggerate now. The only real thing is that I have a good vocabulary and I know how to use it at my discretion- the boy said, shrugging his shoulders, softening the strange atmosphere that had been created.

\- Rather, how it's going to the institute? - he asked the man as if it was nothing, but studying the slightest reaction from the other, who stiffened slightly, now more seriously.

-Could be better. Mr. Shadow has been back for just two days and I already want him to disappear again for one of his business trips- Pan answered with an annoyed grimace, -I came to read and study here for the last few days, I wanted to stay by myself-. He knew that with Gold he could mention something about this place. The man there, as he had confided to him after months of more or less reciprocal knowledge, years and years before, had found in Baelfire, a boy who at the time was five years old, a son who, after some months of adoption practices, he had finally gone home with him.Bae had been lucky, he was small, a sweet child and above all he was at the Institute in the age when the requests for adoption were high. Right now, people already had enough problems maintaining themselves and thinking about work to want to have a child. 

\- Books work like a spell, right? They attract you and kidnap you into their world that calls us to itself, like the music of the Pied Piper calls the mice of his story - the man said putting away a tome that someone had left out.

-Although beautiful and enchanted, they take a lot of time. Well spent, sure, but always time that won't come back - said Peter, dissolving the conscious pose of his arms, putting his hands in his pockets.

-Well, books are magical and magic …- Gold murmured,

-... always comes with a price- Peter concluded softly passing a hand through his hair with a tired sigh.

-And I have the magic you are looking for, trust me,- said the man, -go to the last section of the fantasy department, letter T, third shelf from the bottom and seventh book from the left. You won't regret it - he advised him before he disappeared among the shelves. Peter raised an eyebrow with a slightly confused expression for a few seconds before turning and going to the section indicated to him. He reached the shelf marked with the letter T, scrolling it up to the volume to which Gold had guided him, carefully extracting it from the row, finding himself with the volume of "The Hobbit". He smiled slightly, looking at him well, noting that it was a wonderful limited edition and leafing through it he noticed the artfully made illustrations. He closed it gently and was about to leave when to his right he caught sight of a figure who, with a second more careful look, recognized with horror.

He was the stripper of Storybrooke Night, the one who, taking advantage of his momentary state of confusion, had kissed him in front of everyone, making him look like an inexperienced idiot. Peter moved quickly so as not to be seen, looking at the man from a hidden point, the book still in his hands. Of course, now he wore tight black jeans, a red shirt that could be seen under his open black leather jacket, but he was sure it was him. Black hair, many silver earrings and that eyes; that even from there he could see well because of their so intense blue color, those if he never forgot them he knew it.

While his eyes remained still on the figure of the man he felt a pungent discomfort rise and nestle in his chest, mixed with a slight physical attraction which, irritating though it was, could not and would not deny. That was and remained the man who had ridiculed him, of whom he intended revenge and had sworn to do so on his honor. The only thing now was to understand HOW, how he would get revenge; he didn't know him enough to hit him personally. Of course, with some contacts he had he could have had him fired from the Night ... but he wasn't in his style; he wanted to hit him deeply, so that he could remember for years.

He waited patiently, noting that he too seemed to appreciate the fantasy a lot, since he spent at least twenty minutes in front of those shelves, leaving at last with 3-4 books in his arms. When the man decided to leave, the boy pulled himself up, his legs aching slightly from the position in which he had been forced in those minutes, the look in his eyes that promised nothing good.


	3. Control

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the story progresses we'll enter more and more into the psychology of the characters, step by step.  
> Soon new characters will enter the field, but for the moment, you will begin to understand why some of them act in a certain way.

Peter walked to the exit, careful that the man had left and was still not in the library, passing first to the counter to Mr. Gold to let him know that he had appreciated the suggestion and willingly took home the book. Also he wanted to check something...  
He came to the counter at a fast pace, placing his arm on it and leaning against it as he showed the book with his other hand to the man, whose face opened in a smile.

-I see that my suggestion was appreciated...Keep it as long as you need it, but treat it with due respect, it cost me a lot of money to get my hands on it and I'd like to avoid having to choke you because it's ruined - the man warned him with an intense look.

-Now You knows me, You know You can trust me easily- the boy reminded him, -rather...I would need a little favor, Gold, an information that won't cost You anything- he said with a slight smile, his voice persuasive at the right point .

-What kind of...Information? I don't want to end up in the middle of your mess Peter-, said the man as he passed him the usual form of circumstance, which the other completed without problems.

-Nothing dangerous, I can assure you. I just need a name, nothing more. The one of the man with black hair and blue eyes who just left...And everything you know about him.- he clarified, finishing signing and laying the pen on the counter, looking up at the man.

-I can't disclose information about my customers as if nothing had happened, I would end up being reported- Gold replied, spreading his arms. The young man just snorted, raising his eyes for a moment, then returning to rest them on the other, his head slightly tilted to the side, an amused expression on his face,

-Come on, I'm sure we can find an agreement. After all, it is your strong point to make exchanges with people...Tell me what you want and I will find it for You- Peter murmured leaning slightly towards him.

-Well...There would be to supply the category of Italian works in the foreign books section. Bring me something of value and I will give you the surname of the one you are looking for- said the man nodding with one hand, like a knight inviting to dance the lady, holding it out to the boy, who squeezed it with a smile.

-Deal done, time two or three days and You will have what You want, I can assure You - Peter replied confidently, taking the book and the heavy jacket with him, putting it on; outside the wind had begun to blow with arrogance, violently shaking the branches of the trees, making their leaves fly away, now yellow and red, hovering in the air that dragged them away.

-You better run home, it seems that a nice flood is coming and also I will close the library very soon- said Gold while the boy carefully put the book in the black leather shoulder bag. Peter grimaced the word "home", closing the zipper of his jacket with a dry gesture.

-This evening I take the bus, as much as I love this time, in the next few days I am full of tests at school and I cannot afford absences- he clarified making sure to have the card for public transport with him. 

-I didn't think you were so studious and respectful of commitments- said the man looking at him with a minimum of undisguised astonishment in his gaze.

-It is Shadow who cares about these things- the boy replied with a tone of who wanted to end the discussion there, not wanting to add anything else. Because it wasn't necessary.

-I will bring You the agreed price, be sure of it, but be careful to remember your part- he said going towards the large carved wooden doors of the exit.

-I never forget the name of a customer, you should know it- said Gold as a greeting just before the young man left, closing the door behind him.

As he set foot outside the library, a gust of wind as cold as the arctic wind hit him in full, making him shiver a lot and tighten him more in his jacket. As usual, the streets were full of cars, but there were not many people on the sidewalks, except here and there, a couple or some family. At that hour the businessmen and women returned from work, but given the freezing weather they preferred to take the subway, in order to avoid the cold as much as possible. The lights of the street lamps, combined with those of the shops, in whose windows the Christmas decorations already stood, illuminated the streets along with some sparodic advertising sign. Not like Piccadilly Street, which was so full of advertising screens and department stores that it probably consumed 1/3 of England's electricity. He pulled up the hood of his sweatshirt, slipping his hands into his pockets, walking briskly towards the bus stop, which was uncrowded at that time, finding with relief that his vehicle would go from there to five minutes. He sat down on the small frozen bench, as far away from other people as possible, leaning his back against the hard plastic wall of the stop.

From there it would take about half an hour to get home..He took a hand from his pocket to take a look at the phone display to see the time, finding that it was already 19:45, so he would have arrived just in time to cook dinner for everyone. He snorted slightly, quite tempted to send a message and say that he would not return that evening and go to Felix's house, who practically, since his parents were always traveling, had the apartment all to himself. But he knew that if he did, Shadow would go out to eat in a luxury restaurant as he did every day for lunch and dinner, leaving the kids to get by and, as much as he hated that place, he didn't want to go back the next morning and find that it had burned down. As soon as the bus arrived, he pulled out the card, getting on and rubbing it on the appropriate panel, automatically paying, going to the top, sitting on one of the seats at the bottom, wearily placing his head against the window. He only hoped that one of the usual groups of idiotic kids who would put the music on the ball and scream would not go up; his headache would certainly not have rejoiced at the thing and he was not in the mood to be pissed at someone.

He ran a hand over his face deciding to put on the headphones and attack the music, trying not to fall asleep or he would have risked losing his stop and ending up blocks further down. He was trying to distract himself, but his mind kept returning with his own thought to that man, self provoking a feeling of annoyance mixed with impatience; he just had to find out who he was and then he would make him pay, even if for the moment he had only a confused idea in mind, he was thinking about it and perhaps he had found the solution. He had never done such a thing like that before. Of course, he had come close with Wendy, but in that case the only thing that mattered was to use her, to throw her off the pedestal that, as a rich girl and daddy's daughter, had built itself and on which the younger girls had raised her, making her ego, already immense in itself, grow enormously, which made her look at the less important ones, those like him, from top to bottom. Here the question was different, not so much a question of lack of respect, but of practically public humiliation. He barely grinned as the idea took shape in his mind. Sure, Felix wouldn't have been happy, but knowing him he wouldn't have protested that much; they would argue for not even a couple of minutes and then the blonde would give up, helping him. 

By sheer willpower he managed not to fall asleep on the bus seat, getting off the bus quickly when it stopped at his stop, violently shivering because of the cold which, after half an hour spent more or less in the heat, he was no longer used to. He took the keys out of his bag, walking briskly towards the Institute, only wanting to end that day as soon as possible; the next day he would have had an art history test on Symbolism, Munch and Klimt, but luckily for him, he had studied enough in the previous days and that afternoon. always strictly in Gold's library; he had tried to study at home, but if before it had been the kids who had messed up and not left him alone, then it was Shadow's suffocating presence in the house that had deconcentrated him. He slipped the keys into the lock with a minimum of difficulty because of his hands trembling with the bitter cold. He entered the building with a sigh of fatigue which was also a little relief when he felt the heat slowly invade him, making him regain sensitivity in his limbs.  
The first thing he noticed was the volume of the TV that was immediately lowered and the silence that fell like a heavy hood. He put the keys away, taking off his shoes and putting them in their place, going down the corridor until he came to the doorway of the living room. He barely had time to notice the reliefed faces of the older kids, when instead one of the little ones threw himself on him embracing him so suddenly that he almost fell backwards. Peter snorted loudly trying to take him off,

-How many times have I told you not to attack me like that, fuck- he said adjusting his clothes. The boy released him and went back to sit on the sofa with the others, hiding an amused smile. Peter ran his gaze over them, crossing his arms over his chest, too tired to think of cooking for everyone. 

-Look, what if we order a bit of everything at the Chinese restaurant? - he asked mentally calculating that the money he had earned in the previous days was enough, or rather, it would have been enough for that week. He had to hope to find a couple of customers before the weekend, or he would spend Saturday night in a club surrounded by profiteers. He was roused from his own thoughts by the boys' voices of assent.

-Well, the takeout menu you know where it is, call and order a portion of what you want. I'm going to take a shower - he said simply, adjusting his bag better on his shoulder, going up to his room and closing the door behind him, exhausted. He held a yawn, pulling the book out of the bag, carefully placing it on the desk, leaving the bag on the ground in the corner next to the garbage can. He took off his jacket, leaving it on the chair, undressing and remaining only with his underwear on, going to wash himself, even if the water wasn't as hot as he wished, it was always better than nothing. He took the time he needed, basking a little under the water, feeling his shoulders a little less heavy as his mind faded and the problems seemed to get smaller. He came out of the shower stall grabbing a towel, wiping it vigorously on his hair, preferring to dry it in that way than wasting energy and messing with the hairdryer.  
He dried himself, going to his room to get dressed, putting on his sweatpants and a light emerald-colored sweater, the pale skin that stood out in contrast. He had just dropped dead weight between the covers of the bed, dimly illuminated by the lights of the street lamps that leaked from the window, when the cell phone, still in his jacket pocket, rang. He snorted, running a hand over his face, pulling himself up with difficulty, getting up and retrieving his cell phone, clicking on the green icon without even looking at the name on the screen.

-Yes? - he answered quietly, leaning his back against the wall, slightly shivering from the cold of the wall that had been a little leaked through the light fabric of the sweater.

-Pan...It's a pleasure to hear you...- answered a low voice from the other end, -you have some time for me, right? - he asked with a hint of amusement. The boy rolled his eyes slightly, holding a sigh; that man would drive him crazy sooner or later, he knew it. 

-Depends, how much do you offer me? - the young man asked in return, putting a hand in his pants pocket, leaning better with his back to the wall, assuming a relaxed posture, sure of himself. He heard the person on the phone laugh slightly, barely crackling the sound.

-You never change, right boy? I need your skills and I can assure you that I will pay you back twice as much as you did last time - Peter smiled slightly at those words, then looking at the book placed on the desk. 

"Listen ... let's make you give me twice the usual amount and help me recover something," he said in a persuasive voice, while the sound of the bell rang below downstairs, muffled by the closed door of the room. 

-Fine, but just because it is urgent...What do you need? Drugs, weapons, jewels to be resold? - asked the man while the boy pulled out the money with his free hand and started going down the stairs. Already from there he heard the shouts of the kids. 

-Nothing of all this. Do you believe me so obvious? I need you to find me an ancient volume of a great Italian classic, like Dante, Manzoni or Petrarca- he said making a sign to the boys to take the take away packs, hinting a smile at the delivery boy, extending him the money.

-What a problematic boy ...- snorted the man clearly annoyed, -I will try to satisfy you, but you try to do your job properly. I want to see you at my club tomorrow evening around 11 pm, don't delay - the client closed the speech, leaving Peter free to breathe a sigh full of tiredness while taking the rest that the boy was kindly offering him. He closed the phone and put it in his pocket,

-Thank you very much, goodbye- he said politely, closing the door as soon as the young man had left saying goodbye. He ran both hands through his hair pulling them back, closing his eyes. The headache didn't want to disappear and leave him alone. He shook his head slowly, heading to the kitchen where the boys had already begun to take the food out of the packs, arranging it in larger dishes from which everyone would take whatever they preferred. He sank into a chair wearily grabbing a plate, serving himself without saying a word. The boys around him continued to speak as usual, but he clearly felt their curious eyes on himself, waiting for something they would not have obtained, as always, moreover.

-No, little fucking nosy, I won't tell you who I was talking to on the phone. They are not things that concern you. Just think about your business- he said simply, immediately triggering a series of grunts and protests from the kids, which he ignored quietly reaching out to take a handful of French fries. He would have desperately wanted to take refuge in Felix's house until the end of that week of Hell full of tests and various commitments, if he hadn't known very well that they would have done everything except study. They would get lost talking about who knows what ... and then there was the commitment he had made for the following evening, he certainly could not bring Felix with him; the less the other knew about his work the better it was. Also because it touched the illegality sometimes.

-Tomorrow avoid making all the mess you made as soon as Shadow went out to go where the hell he was supposed to go. I need silence to study - he admonished them, glaring them with their eyes, obtaining the immediate result of lowering their. 

-But you are excessive! There is no use studying so much! - Michael exclaimed from his place on the corner of the table, receiving several nods of assent from his companions.

-It's useful if one doesn't want to become a goat like you- Peter replied, unleashing a chorus of laughter. The boy let out a slight smile. But it was true, he needed more peace if he wanted to hope to overcome chemistry and physics that year. 

-However, seriously, stop making so much noise, or I swear that from now on you will make your own arrangements for meals. If I'll stop taking care of it, you would have no choice but to learn how to cook and we all know very well how it would end- he said making them blush with shame - and in any case sooner or later you will have to learn - he warned them filling the plate and getting up from the table. 

-Clean everything when you're done and wash the dishes, don't just leave them to soak hoping they will magically wash themselves- he said grabbing the plate and then go up to the room by locking the door. He placed the plate on the ground, next to the heater, a few centimeters from the large pillow he had placed there when it had started to get cold. At least so he could sit on the soft to read, being moreover even in the heat. With a clean hand he took the book recommended by Gold, sitting on the pillow resting his back against the radiator, reading and occasionally stretching his free hand to take something from the plate. It was better to enjoy that moment of tranquility because then that week would have been truly devastating mentally. 

\--------------------

-The matter is very simple. If You want the agreement to go through, all You can do is follow the directions of Mr. Grays- said Peter, comfortably seated at a table in the club, the sleeves of the shirt pulled up to the elbows.

The man in front of him looked at him badly, while Grays next to him, his client, tried to hold back a satisfied smile. Peter opened in a crooked smile, his gaze fixed on his opponent, 

-I know You're wondering "why?" and the answer is simple. Mr. Lannes at the head of Lannes Corp has a secret relationship with the daughter of one of the country's most powerful families and can easily get to the access codes You need. Obviously I won't tell You who it is...I wasn't born yesterday. However, he has enough men and power to take care of You in case You try to force him. Your best option, the only one that will lead You to success among other things, is to collaborate with Mr. Grays, a close friend of Mr. Lannes, who will certainly not answer him with a refusal given the favors he owes him- the boy briefly explained taking a sip from his glass of vodka, his expression extremely relaxed. The man in front of him hesitated for several minutes before sighing heavily and reaching out a hand to Mr. Grays, who squeezed it satisfied. 

-Done deal, I presume,- said Peter, getting up, -so my work is done here.- He stepped out of the club, making sure he was alone before letting out a sigh full of tiredness. He rubbed his face with the palm of his hand, trying to ignore the cold that had pervaded him as soon as he set foot out of there. He just needed a couple of minutes of peace before going back to get his jacket and bag, and with it his own profit. He certainly would not have gone from there without taking what was due to him. Not to mention that he couldn't wait to get his hands on the "supplement" that Grays owed him, so as to deliver it to Gold and finally get what he wanted. The name of its "enemy". He snorted slightly and his breath immediately condensed into a cloud of steam that hovered a few moments in the air and then vanished. On the street the cars darted fast, in a blaze of flashing lights and horns that could have easily sent an epileptic attack to a person not used to all that. He checked his cell phone for a second, finding notification of five missed calls from Felix. He rolled his eyes; and he had told him that he was busy with work that evening.

-Problems with the boyfriend, brat? - asked a voice to his right and the boy barely refrained from jumping. Peter immediately turned his face, finding himself in front of Mr. Larson, the man with whom his client had just made an agreement, who looked at him with a mixture of derision and hatred in his eyes.

-Mh? Oh no, You know, I still haven't found someone to bond with so tightly. Maybe I'll change as an adult, who knows - he said shrugging with an amused smile. The man moved away from him, his hands buried in the pockets of the elegant suit he wore under his heavy jacket, his hair pulled back with gel, his facial features hard. He didn't like him, not even a little. He reminded him unsettlingly of Shadow, even though he didn't have his own intimidating aura.

-I have already seen kids like you and they have never had a nice ending, brat, in fact they usually end up being sluts for powerful men, and you really seem like a huge whore- he said as disgust filled his eyes. The boy held his gaze, holding back the flood of insults that had risen in his mouth and that were pressing to come out of his lips. Larson broke into a sneer before turning his back on him and bursting out laughing, making his way down the dimly lit alley that emerged onto the main road.

-Yes, I thought those were the companies You hang out with. Who knows what your fiancée would think of it. Such a thing like this would almost certainly destroy the marriage of convenience that You are so keen on, Mr. Larson- said Peter, his green eyes fixed on the back of the man who was now motionless, his posture clearly rigid. The boy broke into a satisfied smile. 

It was a moment.

The man moved abruptly, putting a hand in the inside pocket of his jacket and turning around throwing at him something not immediately identifiable. A silver glitter shone in the dark and Peter moved just in time to avoid finding a thin throwing knife stuck in his chest. A trickle of dark blood dripped from his right hand, which stained the sidewalk beneath him. The boy's ears whistled, his eyes fixed on something he didn't really see. His heart was pounding so hard that it could have come out of his chest and he was amazed that his beat could not be heard throughout the alley. As he had seen the other move he had acted instinctively and out of luck, and thanks to his quick reflexes he had grabbed the weapon before being hit, dropping his cell phone, whose screen now dimly lit his shoes. He had miscalculated, however, and his hand had tightened on the blade, which had practically ripped open his palm. He dropped the weapon to the ground, barely holding back a groan of pain, his hand and wrist covered in blood. 

-It's just a game. A great and complex game and to win you need to know how to play properly. Your was an idiotic move. The pact with Grays will only bring you profits and I am the one who made it possible. How do you think he would take it if he knew what happened, huh? - he asked, his gaze fixed on the furious one of the man in front of him, who blanched terribly.

-Exactly, so stay in place. Play it right, Mr. Larson, or You'll lose disastrously. Leave now, we have nothing more to tell us- he said bending down to pick up his cell phone, his head starting to turn slightly for the blood loss. The man turned on his heels, disappearing from his sight in a few seconds, his footsteps sounded briefly in the alley and then went out. Peter pulled himself up and pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket, wiping off the blood as he could, then dabbing the wound so as to limit the flow of blood, but was unable to hold back a groan of pain that slipped from his lips when he had to press on the deep cut. He definitely had to take care of the thing as soon as possible ... He returned quickly to the place, ignoring the chaos that reigned as usual, the dim lights cast dark shadows on his face, going straight to Grays who, with his arms around the life of two beautiful girls (whose total age at eye and cross did not exceed forty) sat at his personal table surrounded by colleagues. As soon as he noticed him coming, he motioned for his men and young women to leave them alone, sensing that something was wrong; the boy was even paler than usual and had the gaze of someone who was ready to kill somebody, a dark shadow under his eyes. He saw him stagger almost imperceptibly before reaching him, placing his left hand open on the table, in a silent request.

-Michaelis went to get your compensation, don't worry, he will be here in a moment- he reassured him, nodding to sit with him, a satisfied smile stood out on his face, the hair of an ash-blonde framed his face softly, his eyes of a dark gray fixed on the figure of Pan. The boy shook his head, as if to say that he did not have time to stop and drink, that he would only take what he deserved and go away, and started to stretch out to take his bag and jacket with the intention of putting it on while he was waiting for Michaelis. Suddenly, however, he had a stronger dizziness than the previous ones that almost made him fall to the ground on his knees, he resisted out of pure willpower and pride, also helped by the fact that Grays had readily stretched an arm to support him. Immediately Peter pulled himself up, barely moving away from the table, the eyes of whom he would never have thanked. The businessman's gaze became more attentive. Now it was clear that something was wrong. He got up around the table until he was next to the boy, grabbing him by the shoulders and making him turn towards him. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed some traces of blood on his arm and the cloth handkerchief held in the young man's right hand, the edges of which were now staining with dark red. Grays's eyes widened slightly. 

-What the hell happened? What the heck did you do?! - he asked in a whisper grasping his wrist a little roughly bringing the offending hand closer to his face and removing the handkerchief, just wincing at the sight of the deep cut that crossed the boy's palm. Peter moved away with an annoyed grimace, taking back his handkerchief and returning to press it on the wound. 

-Nothing, an accident, is less serious than it seems. If You pay me I can go and take care of it properly - he said dryly in a tone that did not allow any reply. The man started to say something and reach out to the boy, but he turned almost casually, having seen Michaelis come towards them and reached out his healthy hand towards Grays' subordinate. He handed him an antique-looking volume and an envelope with banknotes for a total of 2000 pounds. Peter checked personally and quickly that there was all the cash before putting the envelope and the book back in the bag, encountering some difficulty only when he had to put on his leather jacket. All the time Grays had not looked away from him, an indecipherable expression on his face. 

-At least go to the hospital to show you that cut. You can say that it is nothing, but it is not such a superficial thing that it can be ignored- said the man as he watched him close the zipper of the bag. Pan didn't even raise his head, simply nodding, making a gesture with his good hand that meant something like "yes, yes, don't worry it's not your business".

-Well, I hope to see You soon, you know that for any negotiation of any nature You can contact me and I will come to You. Of course, as long as the compensation is adequate- said the boy heading towards the exit, making his way among the people who, dressed in elegant clothes, chatted with each other, some with a glass of some unidentified drink in hand, others who just gesticulated talking about who knows what. The walls were decorated with precious paintings, the corner bar was completely in marble and the back wall was entirely occupied by shelves on shelves where there were crystal glasses and various bottles. One thing was certain; he wasn't part of that place, and he didn't even want to. He went out again, closing the wooden and glass door behind him, quickly heading towards the main road on which the alley opened, extracting the cell phone from his pocket while clicking the rapid call button, bringing the electronic device to his ear.

He had lied. Obviously.  
He could never have gone to hospital for such a thing.  
They would certainly ask him how it happened, where he was and finally who his parents were, being he still a minor.  
Once they learned that he had a guardian they would call Shadow.  
It would have been his end. If that man had found out what work he was doing ... he would almost certainly have appropriated in one way or another of all the money he had left so far, as well as obviously punishing him harshly for jeopardizing his credibility, based only on lies and deceptions, which had been built up over the years. Only two things mattered to Shadow; their social position and power within society, and both stemmed from the respectability he displayed. If he had only dared to risk the latter...  
He shook his head as the phone finally stopped ringing empty and Felix's voice came from the other end, a little kneaded given the time.

-Peter ...? Are you okay? What's going on? - he asked immediately with a slight note of concern in his voice, sitting up on the sofa in his living room where he was watching a movie until two minutes ago. 

-Felix I don't have much time ... Remind me of a couple of things; as long as your parents are away and you still do that part time job you told me about last time don't you?- the boy asked calling a taxi with a gesture of his hand, getting on the first available as soon as it stopped in front of him. He closed the door with a bit of effort, moving his mobile phone away from his ear for a second to tell the driver the way to the destination and then focusing on his friend's answer.

-I still do that job and my parents are away until the end of the month, but why the hell do you need to know that ...-

-I will be with you in ten minutes Felix, don't ask me anything now, please...I'll explain after I just arrive...I have to close...- he said hanging up without even giving the other time to reply or say something. He ignored the curious glance that the taxi driver had thrown at him while talking on his cell phone, letting himself slide better on the car seat, his head turning more and more, he seemed to be about to pass out at any moment. He shook his head slightly trying and managing to keep his eyes open, thanks not only to the loss of blood but also to the fact that in those days he hadn't slept much and it was almost one in the morning now. As soon as the taxi stopped at its destination, he took out of the envelope just enough to pay for the ride, getting out of the car quickly without worrying about greeting the man. In front of him stood the skyscraper in which Felix lived.  
On the ninth floor.  
Fortunately there was an elevator. Not even five minutes later he was already knocking on the apartment door.  
He heard a little hustle and bustle coming from inside, only to see the door open and find himself in front of his friend who, with his tousled blond hair and wearing a simple white shirt and sweatpants, looked at him, bewildered and worried at the same time.

-Ehy! What's going on? Do you feel bad?! - he asked, noting him a little unstable on his legs and moving immediately to support him by passing an arm around his waist, bringing him inside the house with him, closing the door behind him. For once the other let him do it without protest, knowing full well that he should let him do it. Felix made him sit on the sofa looking at him, waiting for an explanation.

-There was a problem at work....An idiot thought it was a good idea to throw me a knife...- he said untying the handkerchief and holding out his hand, palm up, the deep cut in plain sight. The blonde sighed heavily running his hands over his face, wondering what he had ever done so terrible in his past life to have anything to do with him in this one. 

-I'm going to get the first aid kit, you don't move and try not to fall asleep...- he murmured, going to the bathroom to get what he needed. So that was why Peter asked him if he was still doing the part time job he mentioned about two weeks ago when they talked about it while they were out for dinner; he was doing turns in an ambulatory, so he knew how to handle such a thing. Of course, to remember something he said weeks before...He had to have an even better memory than he thought...  
He hurried back from there, sitting next to him, taking out of the briefcase the disinfectant and the necessary to put the points. When Peter noticed that last detail he stiffened imperceptibly.

-I know ... I know you hate needles, but you can't leave a wound like that open, it would take too long to close and you risk to not being able to move your hand well anymore. Trust me ok? I'll do it lightly- Felix said while soaking a piece of cotton with the disinfectant, passing it gently on the cut, trying to do as soft as possible. It burned a lot, but it was inevitable if they didn't want to risk complications. The brown next to him sighed tiredly, the dark circles under his eyes that began to become more evident. He jumped slightly when the needle penetrated the skin of his hand, earning a glare from his friend, who had recommended him to stay as still as possible, or there would be the risk that the scar would remain despite the points. It was a very strange feeling to feel the thread under the skin. He let out a groan of pain as he felt the skin tighten, his gaze stubbornly fixed on the wall in front of him, preferring not to think about what was happening. After several minutes, which seemed endless to Peter, his friend finished the job and closed the first aid kit, advising him not to move his hand too much, as far as he could, or at least not to strain the points. 

-I think it's better if you stay here, you can stay in my parents' room...It's almost two now...Unless you want to go home...- Felix proposed giving him a look while he got up and went to the kitchen to rummage in the fridge. A few moments later he returned, offering him a glass of juice and a piece of chocolate. At the other's slightly bewildered look he snorted, rolling his eyes, almost exasperated.

-You are not good at everything huh? You have lost blood, you have to replenish some sugar or you risk passing out...I'll take you clothes that you can use as pajamas...- he murmured leaving what he had in his hand on the low table in front of the other and then go to his own room, looking for something to lend to the other for the night.  
Left alone, Peter sighed wearily, feeling his eyes begin to close against his will. Remembering what his friend had recommended, he emptied the glass in a few sips, sticking the piece of chocolate in his mouth, making sure that when the blonde appeared in the doorway of the room holding a pair of green tracksuit pants and a black T-shirt, calling him, he found himself with his mouth full.

-Mh? I arrive immediately, a second - he answered in an almost incomprehensible way because of his full mouth, swallowing the chocolate and then getting up and reaching Felix, risking to suffocate him in an attempt to hold back a laugh at the show he had just given. He took his clothes slowly, going to the bathroom to change, without having thought that the other was at least ten centimeters taller than him, which normally didn't bother him but now...Felix was unable to hold back a loud laugh at the sight of his friend who was sailing a little in his clothes. Earning a lightning glare from the other.

-Don't-dare-laugh-Felix, clear? - said Peter crossing his arms on his chest leaning back against the wall. The boy shook his head, still with a smile on his lips, walking past him to go to the bathroom. 

-Go to sleep, come on, tomorrow you don't have a literature test at the second hour? And I have the history one, so it's better for both of us to go to rest ...- he simply said. The brown instead went to the boy's parents' room, stopping for a second on the door.

-Ehy...Felix listen...-

-...Yes...?-

-Thank you- he said softly before entering and closing the door behind him, letting himself collapse wearily on the bed, abandoning himself to the arms of Morpheus

\---------------

It was now the thirtieth time that he turned over in bed in a vain attempt to fall asleep, the blankets pulled up over his shoulders. His ash-blonde hair was tousled, his eyes stubbornly closed in the hope of collapsing at any moment. After another twenty minutes of full vigil, he buried her face in the pillow, letting out a grumble of despair. The point was that he knew exactly what the problem was: he still had part of the anxiety of half an hour ago. Of course, he had previously had to wear a mask of tranquility barely veiled with concern; he could never have shown Peter how agitated and anxious he really was.  
How could he not have been?  
He had called him at that absurd hour without explaining anything, showing up at his house, paler than usual and with a ripped palm and the brief explanation that he was at work, God only knew what kind of work, and one of the men had launched him a dagger.  
"And he was so calm! Fuck!" he swore mentally, kicking the covers away with a dry gesture and sitting up.  
"But yes! I'll risk my live as if nobody cared about me! Nobody cares here!" he imitated his friend's voice in his head, his expression clearly irritated, his breath heavier than usual.  
On those occasions he would have liked to choke him!  
He ran a hand through his hair, ruffling it even more, letting himself go in a tired sigh.  
"That idiot...He always says that he calculates everything and never makes a mistake and instead this time he was fucking close top be killed!" at that thought he felt his chest tighten in a suffocating grip while a shiver ran from head to foot.  
He got up without thinking, leaving his room and slipping slowly into the one where the other slept, approaching without making a sound, not wanting to wake him up.  
The brown slept sprawled between the covers, on his stomach, his face half hidden in the duvet, one arm under the pillow; he must have been quite agitated in his sleep since the sheets covered him only from the waist down.

The bandaged hand was abandoned on the mattress, a few centimeters from the face. Setting his eyes on the bandage Felix let out a sigh full of concern. It had gone well this time, but who knew if he would always be lucky?  
"You're a stupid Peter Pan ..." he whispered softly pulling the blanket up to his shoulders, barely biting his lower lip, barely resisting to run a hand through his hair.  
When the other had shown him the cut he immediately thought it was Shadow's fault. It would certainly not have been the first time that the man raised his hands on his friend, but from there to hurt him in that way...! If Peter hadn't clarified the matter right away, it probably would have resulted in a tremendous quarrel, as Felix would have wanted to call the police without replies and Peter instead ... well, he had been very clear with him about Shadow.

He remembered it well, the very first time he had proposed to the other the idea of notifying the authorities.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

It had happened the year before, during the Christmas holidays, the snow was falling thick and had already completely covered the London streets, making the landscape similar to what there always was on postcards. They were in Peter's room, the latter sitting on the bed reading and he on the pillow on the ground, the music that came out of the small broken-down radio that was in a corner filled the room, filling the silence between them. At one point the brown had stood up, approaching the desk and bending down to get something from the drawer. Unexpectedly as he lowered, a groan of pain escaped him, which Felix could not ignore. His intention was not to say or ask anything, but then the other had pulled himself up and he had noticed a dark bruise that could be seen in the point between the base of the neck and the shoulder blades, partially hidden by the collar of the shirt. 

-What did you do to you back?- he asked trying to use a casual, almost disinterested tone. He immediately noticed the shadow that had appeared in the other's eyes for a second, but Peter immediately masked everything with his usual indecipherable expression, just waving one hand. If he had hoped to get rid of him and his questions so easily this time too, he was wrong. He wouldn't let it go.

-Nothing at all, a little accident on the stairs, sometimes I slip too, you know? - retorted the brown-haired man as he went back to lie on the bed on his stomach, his hair slightly brushing over his green eyes. Felix narrowed his gaze without taking his eyes off him. "Of course, and I believe it as well ..." he thought, getting up with a loud puff and going to stop exactly in front of the other, his arms crossed on his chest, his legs slightly apart and well planted on the ground. He saw Peter look up at him, asking with his eyes what he still wanted, a slightly confused and annoyed expression printed on his face.

-Do you seriously believe that I believe you? Maybe it won't go down to you, but I've known you for...How long now, eight years? I have learned at least to know you a little, maybe I will not know everything about you, you have been very able to make me always and only see what you wanted, but I can guess if there is something wrong. In part I can "read you". I know you will hate me for this and maybe you don't consider me the same way, maybe you only see me as an acquaintance, someone who is sometimes useful to you, but you are my friend. So forgive me if I worry about you, but now tell me the truth! - Felix exclaimed grabbing a stunned Peter by the arm, who looked at him as if he saw him for the first time, forcing the brown to stand up and look him in the eyes.  
This time Pan didn't even try to hide what he was feeling, there was a clear note of hatred in his green eyes, combined with a hint of annoyance and probably embarrassment. He moved away from the boy with a dry gesture, stepping back a couple of steps and clasping his arms against his thin body.

-I fought with Shadow and he grabbed me and pushed me against the wall quite violently, that's all- he replied dryly without looking at him, his gaze fixed out the window misted by the cold, beyond which the snow fell thickly swirling in the freezing air and creating almost a small blizzard. It was clear that he did not like to draw the speech for long, indeed, the sooner they closed it the better it would have been, but Felix was not of the same opinion, especially after what the other had just told him. The blonde slowly took a couple of steps forward, going over to him and reaching out a hand and touching his shoulder.

-This is not normal behavior and you know it too, he should be your guardian, he shouldn't even dare to think about raising his hands on you! - he said looking at him, trying to make his eyes meet with his own, hoping to to find the spark that always lightened it, the one that made him understand that the brown had everything under control and that things would be resolved. Instead, Peter snorted, running a hand through his hair, pulling it slightly back before letting it partially rain over his eyes again.

-Look, forget it ok? It is not a big problem, I will soon understand how to manage him, as I have always done with everyone, end of the discussion- he replied placing one hand on his side and raising the other in the air with a slightly angry gesture, like an engineer who after hours and hours of work is annoyed for not being able to solve the problem that initially seemed so easy. 

-No, not at all that I let loose, call the police holy God! - said the blonde grabbing him by both shoulders and pulling him slightly to himself, a clear note of panic and anger well present in his usually flat and calm voice. He didn't have time to say a single word more. Peter grabbed him by one arm, knocking him to the ground in a move the other didn't believe he knew and blocking him beneath him. Felix's eyes widened slightly, finding his friend on him, one arm under his throat, the other hand busy keeping his wrists locked above his head. He had an expression on his face that he had never seen before; his gaze was hard, sharp as a blade, but not as bright as usual, it seemed that a dark shadow had fallen on his eyes, making them more similar to those of some sort of demon than of a human being.  
Felix had always joked that every now and then, with his ways of doing and speaking, Peter gave shivers, but now...He was really afraid of him. He felt a cold shiver cross him from head to toe, but he could not take his eyes off the boy above him. It was as if something was imprisoning him under the will of the other, preventing him from rebelling seriously or imposing himself in some way.

-You won't say anything at all Felix, have I been clear? Don't even dream of calling someone, saying what happened, least of all to the police, or I'll try to make you pay and you know how vindictive I can be with those who betray me, right? Do you remember what happened to Nibs, or do I have to remind you?! - he said in a low tone, tightening his grip on the other's wrists, his delicate face distorted by a grin that indicated nothing good. Felix felt himself freezing at those words. He remembered well Nibs, one of their schoolmates who should have been in the last year by now, if it wasn't that he had mysteriously disappeared the year before. 

-It was...It was you?! - the blonde exhaled with difficulty given the situation he was in, his chest tightened in an icy grip, his eyes full of fear and amazement. He knew how the other could take it on certain situations, but he would never have believed that he was capable of so much. Peter on the other hand rolled his eyes for a couple of seconds, just puffing, then returning them to the figure of Felix with an amused expression.

-Let's just say that I pushed him...In the right direction for him to follow, the one in which he would no longer give me problems. Do you think I'm crazy...Don't you...? - he murmured slowly bringing his face close to the other's one, until he only had a few centimeters to separate them, his expression now more calm, almost melancholic, -but it's not like that, I simply couldn't allow him to put himself still in the middle of my business Felix, I really couldn't ...- he said looking him in the eyes, his voice reduced to a whisper, freeing the other from the pressure of his arm on his neck.

-So you made Nibs disappear from circulation just because he got into your business ?! But do you listen to yourself when you talk, Peter?!- he exclaimed, finally trying to free himself from his grip, his face altered by anger.

-NIBS ATTEMPTED TO KILL ME FELIX OK?! - cried Peter, grabbing him with both hands by the collar of the shirt and pulling him to himself, obtaining the immediate result of paralyzing the other, -do you remember the burn on the arm? The one that went from my elbow to my wrist and that I told you I had done in the kitchen? Well, I lied, that fool could not stand the fact that I was having more success than he did at work, so he waited to be alone with me in the Underground, you know no, that cellar that we used as a meeting a couple of years ago , and set the place on fire, closing me inside and leaving me there to die! I only came out of there because I almost destroyed my shoulder by breaking through the door! So now tell me Felix, who's the fool here ?! I simply made sure that he was forced to leave London, so that he could never even think of acting against me- he said almost in a snarl and then let him go badly, making him end up on the ground again. Felix looked semi shocked at the other, while Peter was getting up and walking a couple of steps away from him, then crossing his arms over his chest. 

-If you call the police, they'll reassign this place, or more simply me. In both cases it would not end well; or the place would go to one even worse than Shadow, which however I would not know and I would not be able to manage even a minimum for who knows how much, because unless someone proposes for the management these places end up in the hands of the worst people, for the council it doesn't matter in most cases. While if they only reassigned me, who do you think Shadow would direct his rage after? As much as I aim for my survival first of all, I don't want those brats to end badly, they don't deserve it- he explained with a slight sigh, - so please, forget it, I only ask you this and your loyalty. Do I have your loyalty Felix? - he asked, turning to look him in the eyes.

-Forever- the boy answered without hesitation, pulling himself up and placing a hand on the other's shoulder, his gaze serious.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Felix just sighed, letting his gaze wander over the other's sleeping body, an indecipherable expression on his face. A year had passed since that story, but he remembered well the promise made to Peter...He would not leave him, the boy had his loyalty, and he would continue to have it no matter what happened. He reached out a hand, almost fearing the consequences of his action, gently stroking his friend's brown hair, barely pulling a couple of locks away from his closed eyes, unable to resist the need he had to feel him close, safe ...  
If only things weren't so complicated ...


	4. The game is on

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, Peter and Killian finally met in a slightly more conventional place and began to "get to know each other" if you can say so.
> 
> Also, sorry for the short chapter, the next one will be more interesting I promise

-Peter, hey ... Peter! - Felix's voice roused him, causing him to open his eyes and return to Earth. He blinked a couple of times, looking around and noting that they were on the bus going downtown, the blonde sitting next to him, who instead had found a seat by the window.

-Were you sleeping? - Felix asked with a smirk, due to the fact that the other always said he never let his guard down. In response, the boy glared at him, resisting the temptation to give him a nudge.

-I was just letting my eyes rest, you fool- he replied annoyed, running a hand over his face; even if he had slept more than usual the night before, it certainly wasn't enough to fill the several hours of sleep he had in arrears.

-Yeah, I'll pretend to believe you ... the next stop is ours- the blond warned him without completely disappearing his little smile, -how did the test go? - he asked curiously.

-God Felix, if I wanted to talk about the tests after doing them I would start the discussion- the boy said looking at him almost exasperated.

\- Shit, so bad? -

-It went well, I just already waste time on studying, after doing it I don't feel like talking about it anymore- clarified Peter, stretching slightly on the seat as far as the narrow space allowed him. As soon as he saw his stop approaching the window, he patted his friend on the shoulder, gesturing for him to be ready to get off as soon as the vehicle stopped. As the doors of the bus opened the two boys went down at a brisk pace, starting to walk down the wide street in the center. Peter, just a couple of steps ahead of Felix, immediately took the road that led to Gold's library.

-Excuse me, but didn't we have to go to the cinema? - asked the blonde following him.

-First we go to Gold, if we go after the film surely the place will be closed- Peter replied simply clutching himself better in the black jacket hurrying his step, the shoulder strap that slammed slightly against his left leg.

-Ah, yes ... your covenant ...- Felix said looking, unseen, the friend who was walking just ahead of him, -are you sure he will respect iy? - he asked increasing his pace and coming next to him. 

-Do not mention it. After all the mess I went through to keep the deal ...- the brown-haired boy replied, making the other darker in the face, who sighed inaudibly. "Don't make me rethink about that..." he thought as Peter put his hands in his jacket pockets and turned towards him with a confident, almost cheeky smile on his face.

-No...Gold will respect the pact, you can be sure of it- he said, slipping into an alley that he knew was a shortcut to the library, without ceasing to smile. In a few minutes they were in front of the huge wooden doors of the brick building. Peter was the first to enter, holding the door for a moment to let his friend pass, while looking around, noting with pleasure that Gold was behind the counter and there was practically nobody and, more importantly, the man of the which he was trying to discover the identity was nowhere to be seen. He walked briskly to the counter, opening in a crooked smile when Gold lifted his head from the book he was reading and noticed them.

-Mr. Pan! We hadn't seen each other for a couple of days, it's a pleasure to have her here again! - Gold exclaimed theatrically as usual, leaning slightly on the wooden counter, smiling at the two boys, - from that expression I have to deduce that You have my price to pay? - he asked while Peter opened the shoulder strap and pulled out the volume, carefully wrapped in a cloth so that it would not be ruined, placing it on the counter.

-You should know Gold, I never fail- said the boy while the man in front of him removed the cloth, revealing the book and took it carefully studying it thoroughly.

-Well, your payment is really good, I admit it- he said while, trying not to get noticed, he cast a fleeting glance at the bandaged hand of Peter who, noticing it, quickly removed it from the shelf by putting it in his pocket.

-Therefore? I want the information I paid for, it wasn't easy to get my hands on that book you know? - said the brown-haired man, tilting his head slightly to the left without taking his eyes off the man. For his part, Felix, who was behind the boy, continued to move his gaze from him to Gold as if he were following a table tennis match.

-Yes, I think I guessed it...- said the man putting away the volume, -the name of the man you are looking for is Jones. Killian Jones - Gold revealed, leaving Peter slightly amazed - consider the full name a supplement for...The problems You had to retrieve the book - he said with a smirk before dismissing the two boys with a wave of the hand and leaving behind the counter, disappearing between the shelves. 

-Well, I'd say we're done here. Let's go Felix, or we'll be late for the film screening- Peter said simply, turning around and walking out of the library at a safe pace. The boy followed him almost immediately, looking at him a little confused.

-Didn't you say he would only tell you his surname? - he asked as they walked towards the cinema. He saw Peter smile.

-Originally yes, but let's say that by showing the right things at the right time ...-

-You put your hand on the counter on purpose, right? You really are a devious bastard- Felix said opening in an amused smile. Peter let out a slight laugh.

-As I said before Felix ... you should know it by now, Peter Pan never fails- he said turning to look at him smiling. A true smile, not one of circumstance. Felix mentally cursed himself looking at him and thinking he was beautiful.

-Come on, I really want to see Crimson Peak, it wasn't just to say "let's go see something". I care about this movie- Peter said, adjusting his shoulder strap better, heading towards the cinema while Felix, unseen, rolled his eyes cursing himself for his inability to say no to him. He wasn't even interested in that film.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

/ Hey, are we going out? I can go to you in 5 minutes and go somewhere /

\ Sorry, but I'm already busy tonight. If everything goes as planned the first part of my plan will start \

/ If it wasn't illegal you would be a good future stalker you know? /

\ All I did was use Facebook, nothing special. Anyone could have done it, just think for a moment \\. Peter clicked the send button on the chat and then locked his cell phone and put it in his pocket, his gaze fixed on the man that the boy could see beyond one of the windows of the bar, sitting alone at one of the tables. Killian Jones. The man who had ridiculed him in front of an entire club. From there began his revenge. He adjusted his black leather jacket and then entered the room ignoring the looks of some of the men sitting at the tables, well aware that he was 4 years younger than those required to be in there at that hour. In a more important place they would have asked him for a document and thrown him out, but the Red Lion had always been of wide sleeve for his immense luck. He sat on one of the stools at the counter, casually resting an elbow on the wooden shelf and barely hinting a smile at the young bartender who was cleaning the glasses. 

-Vodka smooth, keep the rest- he said quietly, extending the banknote on the counter, immediately getting a big smile from the boy,

-Immediately- he said simply taking the money and handing the glass to the boy shortly afterwards, making his fingers and Peter's touch "casually" while the latter grabbed it. The brown gave him one of the best fake smiles of his repertoire while barely refrained himself from glaring looking up at the ceiling. "My god ... so original ..." he thought ironically, but after all, it was fine, he had to somehow attract Jones' attention. He took his glass, turning his back almost completely on the counter while he was taking a couple of sips of vodka. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the source of his interest rise from the table and head towards him, inserting himself between his stool and the one on his left, placing a hand on the counter. Peter hid a victorious smile against the thick rim of the glass.

-Tom, what are you up to, mh? Okay, here the rules are mild, but don't you think it's an exaggeration to give vodka to a little boy? - he said with a slightly audible reproach in his slightly amused tone. Peter just turned to him, realizing that he had actually never heard him speak clearly before, only that phrase after the kiss on the Night, which moreover had been half covered by music.

He had a slightly hoarse voice, but warm and quite sensual. If it was combined with the factor of his appearance very pleasing to the eye, it was not a surprising factor that they had taken him to work on Storybrooke Night.

-Excuse me, you know, but who tells you I'm a "kid"? I could very well be 24 years old- he said, turning to Jones with just a raised eyebrow. The man smiled at him,

-You certainly look like it and you're not 24 years old, I guess, 14 by chance? - said the dark-haired man with a clear amused note in his voice.

-Wrong, try again, maybe you'll be luckier,- replied Peter, looking at him with a crooked smile, -but I guess you would spend the rest of the evening saying lower and lower ages just to irritate me.- Jones put a hand on his heart with a feigned sorrowful expression, as if a blow had struck him in the chest.

-Saying this you hurt me you know? - he said in a tone of theatrical desperation, promptly reciprocated by the boy, who put on a decidedly convincing sorry expression.

-Oh, how sorry ... Ah no, I really don't give a damn- he said taking another couple of sips from his glass, looking at the man from over the edge, his eyes fixed on those of the other.

-You really are a little shit- Jones said sitting on the stool next to Peter's, one arm resting on the counter, looking amused.

-Pass to the offenses now? Well, they don't work with me. Little shit? I am really honored-

-Uhm, and this honored little shit also has a name by chance? - asked the man, before ordering the barman a glass of rum for himself, his blue eyes discreetly peering at the boy in front of him. 

-I could keep you on the thorns and not tell you, but I don't like the idea of being called "kid" for a long time. Peter. Peter Pan- he said, getting a slightly astonished look from the man, mixed with a spark of fun.

-Serious? Peter Pan? Like the children's cartoon? - Jones said with a chuckle, which stung the boy in pride. Yet he should have been used to it; it always happened when he introduced himself to people, people thought it was a joke.

-I caught another ignorant. The original story, the one written by James Barrie, not the bad copy Disney made of it, is a story that is not at all innocent. A story full of darkness, hidden truths and very little childhood - Peter said, noticing the man's gaze change almost imperceptibly as he explained, -and ... Believe me, I am the adult version- he concluded by finishing the vodka in his glass, putting it down on the counter and passing "casually" and discreetly the tongue on his lips, gesturing to the boy behind the counter to refill his glass. Meanwhile, Killian had the impression of having already seen the boy somewhere ... When his gaze, now more attentive and inquiring, rested again on the young man and saw him gently resting on the counter, with the glass now full again and that slightly absorbed air of ostentatious superiority came back to him like a flash the evening of a few weeks before at Storybrooke Night. The same boy he was facing now, leaning against the wall of the club, next to the piano bar, with a drink in his hand and his gaze fixed on the stage, on him.

-Tell me a little, Peter, what the hell were you doing in a night club nights ago? - he asked suddenly, hoping to make him feel like someone caught in the act, to break the air of impenetrability that surrounded the boy since he had I fixed my gaze on him now almost an hour before.

-I was having fun, maybe? I was with a friend, I was looking for some guy to spend the evening with but I had no luck, happy now my dear Detective Stripper? - Peter replied giving him an indecipherable look.

-When they'll do serious age checks in that place I won't need a second job anymore- Killian murmured taking a sip from his glass of rum. In response, Peter finely raised an eyebrow, unable to restrain his tongue,

-Oh yes? And what do you do as a second job, the porn actor? - he asked amusedly putting down his glass, now half empty. He saw Jones's gaze harden almost immediately as the man pushed the drink away from his lips, lowering his glass. Peter felt the air between them become decidedly heavy.

\- Let's get one thing straight, kid. Being a stripper is not the same as being a whore, and even in that case I would have to complain about your way of doing, to be honest, so don't try to treat me with that air of superiority that you like so much to flaunt - he said, chaining his gaze with that of the boy, watching him intensely. Under the annoyed gaze of the man, for the first time in his sight, Peter felt almost guilty for speaking out of turn. He turned his eyes away from Jones's, sliding them over the other patrons of the bar, unable to keep up with the man's forget-me-not eyes. An almost embarrassed silence fell between them which lasted a few minutes before the boy cleared his throat slightly, taking a sip from his own glass and looking sideways at Killian.

-Anyway, you still haven't told me your name- he pointed out, carefully avoiding to make him understand that in any way that, figuratively, he was already holding that information in his hands. He saw the man in front of him open in a slight smile, bending his head to the side with a note of fun and malice in his gaze.

-You didn't ask me and then, tell me a good reason why I should tell you- he said in a tone of voice that almost hid the real phrase, "why should I trust you and reveal myself to you?" and that made the boy look up at the ceiling for a second and snort a laugh.

-I told you mine and if you suspect that I may have given you a false name I also have a document with me "Mr. I do not trust anybody"- he answered leaning slightly towards him, bringing his own face a few centimeters from that of the man.

-Well, it would not be a bad idea to show me a document, at least I would find out how old you are- Killian said, involuntarily losing himself in studying the boy's features, sliding his gaze on his eyes of an intense green, along the profile of his delicate nose and pausing a few seconds (too many) on his lips, at that moment drawn in a smirk, which apparently seemed tremendously soft, in stark contrast to the pungent words that came out of it.

-If you prefer I can call you "uncle" from here to the end of time- said Peter in a tone that wanted to seem casual despite the veiled threat imbued in the sentence. At those words Killian raised both hands, one of which was still holding the glass of rum, as if under arrest, an amused expression on his face.

-Ok, ok, I give up, I could grow 10 years old just by hearing myself called like that just one more time. Killian Jones, at your service- he said spreading his arms and bending slightly forward, in a cheeky hint of bow. He did not notice the slight flash of satisfaction that flashed in the boy's green eyes.

-You have a name that sounds very important. Are you maybe a fugitive aristocrat? - Peter said, leaning better against the counter, turning slightly and looking at the man out of the corner of his eye. Jones at those words opened in a crooked smile.

-Nothing so important in reality, maybe one day I'll tell you, who knows- the man teased him, completely emptying his glass and placing it on the counter together with the payment for his drink and that of the boy. He got up from the stool, patting the chestnut on the shoulder and going towards the door of the bar.

-Get back home now, it only hurts what happens after a certain hour- he said, turning slightly towards him, one hand already on the door handle.

-What are you, my babysitter? - Peter said mockingly, his gaze fixed on him. In response, Killian opened in a strange little smile.

-No, as far as I can see you don't need it, but trust me, go home- the man simply said before leaving, closing the door behind him. Peter frowned slightly as he finished emptying his glass, placing it on the counter. Seeing that Jones had paid for his second drink, the boy got up, putting his hand in his jacket pocket and leaving the club in turn, heading for the bus stop that would take him home.He wasn't following Killian's advice. The day he would do something because someone else had told him to do it was still a long way off. He had simply succeeded in his aim: to attract the attention of the man. Yes he definitely noticed how he looked at him at some point, so he had no reason to stay there anymore. Moreover, that evening he did not even have to meet one of his customers, so it was worth returning to the Institute in the heat, hoping that Shadow was not at home, perhaps trying to finish the book he had taken weeks before from the library. Only when he sat down on the bus did he remember to take his cell phone out of his pocket, checking the notifications; there were a couple of messages from Felix, one from Shadow and two stupid Facebook notifications. Out of pure survival, he decided to check that of his guardian first, who briefly told him to move his ass and come home. The boy sighed slightly, glancing out the window to see what stop he was in at the time, then replying to the man that he would be home in a maximum of 20 minutes. He received no reply, a sign that luckily Shadow had nothing more to say to him; he should have worried if he had replied ...

He dismissed the social notifications in a little while, after all he had signed up only because it could be useful to him, both for his work and for his personal surroundings, such as the situation with Killian, to then look at what Felix had written to him.

/ Yes, but you are particularly disturbing when you do such things. In practice, nothing can be hidden from you for more than two minutes./ The message was dated about an hour and a half earlier. The next one, Felix had sent it to him a few minutes ago.

/Then? Have you already fucked him or what? I hope that at least he can do well between the sheets./ Reading those words Peter looked up at the ceiling of the bus with a slight puff, a little annoyed. Although it was a message and they were not conversing vocally he could very well feel Felix's hatred. Dear God, after all it was just a game, nothing more, there was no need to take it so much personally... He went home trying to make as little noise as possible, slowly closing the door behind him and then turning the key in the lock. He walked softly down the corridor, immediately noticing the light that was barely visible through the crack of the half-open door of Shadow's office, the last room before the stairs. He glanced inside, seeing the man who, dressed in one of his usual expensive suits, was sitting behind his mahogany desk, working on some papers. He hesitated a second before knocking on the slightly ajar door and entering; he would have preferred not to risk disturbing him, so as not to irritate him, but he knew well that Shadow would certainly have been furious the next day if he had not warned him that he had returned home. That man always wanted to have everything and everyone under control; especially Peter. He considered him the one that could cause him the most problems, given the boy's astute and charismatic nature. Peter saw the man look up from the papers and lay his dark green eyes on him. The hard features and the dark hair pulled back certainly gave him a beautiful appearance, which however intimidated. The boy barely refrained from taking a slight step backwards; that man gave him anxiety, his mere presence was enough to suffocate him, like a shirt with a collar too tight ...

-Where have you been so far? I hope for you that you haven't made a mess - he said gravely, his voice low but clear. To someone outside the situation, the man would have simply seemed a somewhat rigid guardian who took care of one of his proteges, but Peter knew well how things really were; Shadow just wanted to make sure his actions didn't fall on him, that Peter didn't undermine his respectability.

-Of course not, I was just taking a walk around the city with Felix, nothing more- replied Peter lying quietly. It was an absolutely credible lie after all. Shadow "knew" Felix, had seen him with Peter several times and knew that the two often went out into the city. He kept his gaze on the boy for a while longer, lingering on his face, but Peter wore an expression so calm and sure that it would have been impossible to even doubt what he had said. Shadow then waved his hand, making him understand that he could go and not disturb him. Peter then left the room, closing the door and going up the stairs, heading for his room, only eager to put as much distance as possible between himself and that man. He locked the door and let himself collapse on the bed, pulling his cellphone out of his jacket pocket; he still had to answer Felix.

\ Don't be an asshole. No, I didn't fuck him. If this first encounter had ended with sex I would have been spoiled. Things like that end in two ways; or spark and the thing goes on or it remains a thing from a blow and away without feelings. Usually, in 90% of cases, the second option is the most frequent. My plan to destroy him would go up in smoke and the game would end even before it started \ he typed with a slight smile, then clicking send and hoping that his friend understood, he didn't want to discuss the matter anymore. He put the cell phone on the bedside table, taking off his jacket and clothes, throwing them badly on the desk chair, putting on only the sweatpants he had left on the bed that morning, putting himself under the heavy blankets. Although on his way home he had pondered the idea of going back to reading the book Gold had advised him, now that he was in bed he felt his eyes get heavy and he wanted nothing more than to let himself go into the arms of Morpheus trying to recover a minimum of backward sleep. He fell asleep in a short time, collapsing into a strangely tormented and not very restful sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's say that these two characters are quite difficult to manage in AU; I find myself a little better with Peter than our dear Jones, I admit it. Please also leave me comments, opinions, whatever you want, if you have any questions, I will answer you without problems, I assure you.
> 
> ps: who knows if someone has noticed all the "easter eggs" that I have scattered throughout history, have you noticed ???


	5. Without feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And here we are in the fifth chapter. What can I say ... there are things that satisfy me and others not, but given the little free time that I have reached this point of the year...  
> I'm so sorry for the sexy scene in this chapter because yeah, I can write good nsfw in Italian but in English eheh...I'm not so sure ahahahaha, sorry.

The sun that rose the next morning found Peter, already at six in the morning, awake and sitting on the bed with his back against the headboard, his knees slightly pulled to his chest by his thin arms. His green eyes were lost on the city landscape that could be seen from the window; the buildings and streets illuminated by the soft and delicate light of dawn. Some people were already on the street, well covered in their elegant coats, briefcases in hand or handbags on their shoulders, the air slightly sleepy. At the end of the street the garbage collectors were finishing their shift in that neighborhood. Peter ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even more, the dark circles that were beginning to be more noticeable on his thin face, making his gaze darker than already was. He had slept little and badly and the result was that he now had a persistent headache that did not leave him alone. He felt dazed. He had remained like this until 8, immersed in who knows what thoughts, the green eyes that absentmindedly observed the glimpse of the city on which his window looked out, gradually taking on life with the passage of time. Around 7 he had heard noises downstairs and then the door of the building that opened and closed heavily, a sign that Shadow had gone out to go to work and he was finally "free". He had not moved, however, while sitting on the bed, looking at other people's pieces of life from behind the glass. He didn't want to go to school that day; after all, he did not even have tests or questions to be subjected to and he knew well that he would not be able to resist right now all morning and part of the afternoon closed in that place. He tiredly took his cell phone sending a message to Felix, warning him not to wait for him and that he would not come to class that day, to tell the teachers that he was sick. What is not entirely false actually seeing how he felt after that night.

He had a half idea of going to breakfast in one of the Starbucks in the center and then going to continue his exploration of the British Museum, he needed to relax. He tiredly pulled his legs off the bed, standing up and barely suppressing a yawn by taking a sweatshirt and putting it on as he opened the door and went down the stairs. He went into the kitchen, taking out the other boys' breakfast supplies, leaving a note on the table that the school could call to find out if he really was home sick and that they knew what to do in the case. When Acton High School called every now and then to make sure it was true, one of the youngest, Mike or Sean, who were 4 or a little older, had to answer, the only ones who didn't go to school, saying yes, he was sick and that if they asked to speak to Shadow, the man was busy and would call them back if he had time. It never happened. Peter then falsified the signature on the justification and calmly presented it to the professor on duty. If they had caught him, it would have been a disaster, but until then they had never suspected anything. Above all, he was not stupid enough to be absent two days and one no; its maximum had been three days in a month. In this way, when there were interviews at school and Shadow spoke with his teachers, the latter did not bring up the topic, focusing instead on his grades or his behavior. Fortunately for himself, despite the little desire he had to do in some subjects, his general grade point average was very good. The teachers occasionally had to complain only about his ways; they said he was very polite, yes, but that he often took on a somewhat arrogant air, keeping a cheeky attitude towards them too.

Peter closed the cupboard door with a slight thud and then returned to his room to change; he put on a pair of gray jeans, a black long-sleeved shirt and a dark green sweatshirt. Sure, it was just the end of October, but he had to remember where he lived; in London it was already starting to get very cold. He took his cell phone and wallet, slipping them into his sweatshirt pockets, grabbing his black jacket before closing the door, going down the stairs and hanging out, not before having taken the keys. He put on his jacket, putting his hands in his pockets and going to the bus stop at the end of the street, his black boots trampling the wet ground of the streets. During that night it must have rained properly. He reached the stop looking up on the screen announcing how many minutes were left for the next run; he had to wait at least 10 minutes apparently. The boy began to move his gaze up and down the road, observing the people who passed by, trying to imagine what their life was like. Probably the girl in a modestly elegant suit who walked briskly on her heels, the air a little worried and the glasses of coffee in her hands was the secretary in some important office. The boy who, standing next to a bar with a bouquet of roses behind his back, swinging on his heels, was waiting for someone for a date. Every now and then he wondered if anyone did the same with him, if somebody stopped to observe him, thinking about what his life might be like; he wondered if anyone had ever come close to reality. 

He took the first bus to the center, sitting on the first free place he found, pulling his cell phone out of his pocket and holding it in his hand, barely playing with it. Usually he preferred to go and sit on the top floor of the bus, but it happened when he went to school and had to run 43 minutes. Now there would be a maximum of 25 minutes. Suddenly the screen of his cell phone lit up and the object vibrated, signaling an incoming call. Almost immediately he moved his gaze from the landscape behind the window to the screen of the device, reading the name: Felix ... He sighed just clicking with his finger on the symbol of the green handset, putting his cell phone to his ear.

-Peter? Where are you ...? - he heard him ask, the blond's voice was barely affected by a note of concern.

-On a bus going downtown, I wrote to you that today I would not have come to school and to say that I am sick- he said, leaning his back better against the seat back.

-I saw. I just wanted to know if it was just an excuse or if you were seriously ill ...- said the boy on the other end of the device. At those words he barely held back a slight smile. Felix was always the usual ...

-Let's say I didn't feel like coming and being locked up in that place for half the day ... I preferred not to come and instead go to Starbucks first and then to the British Museum. Just to do something useful- explained the brown-haired looking at the other passengers on the bus for a moment before looking back outside. As soon as he finished the sentence there were some moments of heavy silence on the blonde's part.

-... Is there something that disturbs you Peter? - Felix asked suddenly, surprising his friend. Peter parted his lips slightly, ready to answer those words, but no sound came out of his mouth.

-... Usually when you go to the museums it is to relax ... It means that something happened or you had a thought that troubled you- continued the blonde, the tone of voice low, as if he feared that the other was angry that he had noticed it. He knew well that Pan hated feeling uncovered, "readable". 

-No ... Nothing ... I just slept badly and as a result I got a headache. So I thought it was better not to come- Peter said with a slight sigh. Was he lying? Partly yes, but it wouldn't have been the first time. He had no obligation to be honest with anyone after all.

-... The usual nightmare? - Felix ventured riskily. Damn him ...

-Only the stupid ones allow themselves to be influenced by what they dream of Felix, I don't think it's my case- Peter replied in a slightly haughty tone, marked even more by his pure English accent. In reference to his words he heard the blond sigh slightly, almost imperceptibly.

-You will come tomorrow? - he asked finally, dropping the subject. Peter ran a hand through his hair and thought about it for a moment; the idea of not showing up even the next day appealed him, but it really wouldn't have made sense to risk unnecessarily. 

-Yes, I think so, I can't take too many liberties now that Shadow is at home- he said, getting up from his seat having noticed the approach of his stop. As soon as the doors of the vehicle opened he went down, walking along the road, vaguely remembering that a Starbucks was exactly in front of the British; really comfortable.

-Is he always the usual pain in the ass? - asked the other while Peter dodged a couple of people walking in the opposite direction from his.

-A little...But I am managing it better in recent times. Ah, if when you come to me he asks you something I was out with you last night. He still fears that I go around making messes for the sake of ruining him-

-Well, can you really blame him? -

\- Partly not, but on the other hand he is not important enough for me to waste time to devise something to harm him publicly - said the brown-haired man shrugging slightly, -now I have to leave you, I have arrived, I'll call you later in case- Peter greeted him before closing the call, putting his cell phone in his pocket, entering the small bar with a sigh of relief, after all cold air was pulling outside and inside it was well warmed up. He thought of leaving his jacket on the back of the chair on one of the small tables next to the window overlooking the street, just to have a reserved seat. But turning to the counter, intent on going to order, he could not hide an expression of slight surprise seeing who was behind the shelf. 

-I can't believe it, Killian Jones, we meet again- he said putting his hands in his jeans pockets and approaching the counter, making immediately the man turn around who, for his part, was quietly working and had not noticed him. As Jones's blue eyes landed on Peter, the man opened in a slight smile, approaching him.

-Is possible that I meet you only in clubs or bars? At least this time I find you in a place more suitable for you- he said obtaining the result of making the boy raise his eyes to the ceiling. 

\- Sooner or later you will remember that I am not a kid and you will avoid calling me like this or I cannot hope that your I.Q go that far? - Peter replied, placing both arms on the counter, crossing them.

-Am I wrong or are you even more prickly than last night? What's up, has anyone here slept badly? - Killian said without knowing he had fully taken us. In response, the boy simply shrugged, - because if you really want Freud has written a book on the subject- said the dark-haired man pecking back a decidedly chilling look. 

-Why instead of trying to psychoanalyze me you don't take my order and make me a cappuccino mh? - Peter said arching an eyebrow.

-Are you always so sensitive or is it an occasional thing? You should sleep more- Jones replied glancing at him and then going to work.

-Have you become my father now? - asked the boy, slightly exasperated.

-No, luckily not, otherwise it would mean that one night I got really drunk to forget to use a condom with a girl. Besides the fact that I think I'm too young- Killian said back, turning his back on him as he fumbled with the machine. At those words Peter said nothing, his gaze fixed on his back covered by the tight white shirt.

-But shouldn't you be at school now or something?- asked the man after a while, turning around and placing the paper cup in front of him. The boy snorted slightly, placing the money on the counter, taking the paper cup with one hand.

-What is it? An interrogation? Today I didn't feel like going there- Pan replied taking a sip, his gaze fixed on the man's face.

-And did you think well to come here to waste time and then, finding me, you decided that it was more fun to be an asshole all the time? - Jones said with a smirk taking the money from the counter and putting it in the cash.

-My world still doesn't revolve around you, you know? I'm only here because this place is precisely in front of my next stop of the day- at those words Killian looked at him with a touch of surprise in his clear eyes.

-... and I thought you were just a nonconformist who tries to prove he is better than everyone else with the haughty air marked by the English accent- said the man, making Peter's nose slightly turn up.

-What is it, do you want to come with me for a tour of the British by chance? - he said with a touch of irony, opening in a crooked smile.

-If it is an attempt to ask me for an appointment I am forced to refuse, unlike you today I work- Jones said with a slight smile veiled by a note of displeasure.

-Who knows, maybe. But now I know that I can find you here practically whenever I want- said Peter emptying his glass and making him land in the trash.

-So I will have to put up with your troublesome presence for a long time I guess- said Killian, but he looked amused. Peter just smiled,

-Maybe yes maybe no. We'll see - he replied - we'll see Jones! - he said simply walking towards the door and waving with one hand before going out and crossing the road, entering beyond the gates of the British Museum, leaving Killian wondering what the heck he got himself into when he kissed him that evening at Storybrooke Night.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It was now lunchtime, the visitors of the museum were almost all sitting down to eat at the tables of the internal bars. Peter quietly passed them heading for the section of ancient Greece. He didn't feel particularly hungry, too busy admiring the museum's works. He was visiting it calmly, returning to it several times in order to devote the right attention to each section without leaving anything out. After all he had all the time he wanted, the works did not run away. He had put the phone in silence as soon as he set foot inside, not wanting to be disturbed by anyone, his hands tucked into the pockets of his sweatshirt. Yet, as he walked through the marble corridors, he couldn't help but think of the luck he had had, to meet Killian in that café. After all, the possibility of this happening were very few. Better this way though. One less thing to worry about. The man was annoyingly interesting, he had to admit it; he had managed to answer him without too many problems, not letting himself be completely taken aback by his ways of doing things. It would have been a great challenge to play. He was sure he had managed to catch his attention, an uninterested man would never have flirted like that, because that was definitely a flirt, or looked at him the way he looked at him. It was all about keeping that interest alive and gradually increasing it.

He had to admit that Killian Jones was definitely good-looking, he couldn't say anything about that. Dark hair, blue eyes, a beautiful physique ...Yes he was physically attractive. He shook his head slightly, returning to focus on the statue of Artemis in front of him, placed with one hand intent on extracting an arrow from the quiver, two dogs crouching at her feet. He didn't like the way his thoughts were taking at all; but as long as there were no feelings involved then he would have nothing to worry about. At that moment he could also have sex with him without feeling anything. He hadn't already gone straight to the point just because, as he had said to Felix, he would have risked sending everything upstream. Times had to be calculated well; he would continue for another couple of times to show up at the cafe and tease him during his work, then he would ask him in some way to go out and at the end of the appointment, depending on the situation, he would decide how far he could go on with him. He almost hoped it will go well soon, he hadn't been sleeping with anyone for two months; his last "boyfriend" had suddenly not been heard or seen and then he had been too busy with other things to look for a new toy boy. Now that he thought about it, it was almost frustrating...

He ran a hand through his hair with a slight sigh, he was almost tempted to call James, a boy who went to school with him and who had been following him for a while, offering him a hit and go. He had no problem taking what he wanted, whether it was information, money or, if necessary, even sex. But with some people it was better to specify that it was a one-time thing, some tended to become tremendously sticky and never let go. He barely wrinkled his nose, leaving the section of classical Greece and heading for the museum exit. Damn Jones and his attractive physique ... Yes he definitely wanted to call James, also because it had started to rain and he didn't have an umbrella. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, looking for the number in the phone book, clicking on it and putting the device to his ear. James answered him after just three rings.

-Pan? To what do I owe the pleasure of this call? - asked the boy on the other end, a clear note of surprise in his slightly hoarse voice.

-Do you remember all the times you asked me to go to bed with you and I said no? -

-What is it, a call to remind me and tease me by accident? -

-No. It is a call to tell you that if you are still interested I will give you one- replied Peter as he settled at the entrance of the museum and observed the rain that had started to fall violently from the sky.

-Are you serious? - he simply heard him ask. James' voice sounded like someone who wouldn't have taken it well if it turned out to be a joke.

-Yes, I give you once with me. Just one, let's clarify this point. I just want to do it, not to have a boyfriend- specified the chestnut, putting his free hand in his pocket.

-Well, I really have to say thank to God for not going to school today, are you there? - James asked, his tone now much more affable. God...How obvious it was.

-No. I'm at the British Museum, but you have a car, right? - said the boy as he let his gaze get lost to observe the people who ran out to the street to shelter where they could from the rain. 

-Apparently today is the lucky day of both of us, I'll save you from going under a flood - said James as he got out of bed and headed towards the door taking the car keys and those of the house, going out and closing the door and the gate of the house, -I'll arrive in 10 minutes- he added before ending the call. Peter dropped onto one of the benches in the museum's atrium, putting his cell phone away and taking out his wallet, discreetly checking if he had left a pair of condoms inside as usual, just in case James was so unwary that he didn't have some at home. Sure, they were two boys, but God only knew if he didn't want to risk getting something, after all who knew who James had gone to bed before ... After a couple of minutes, a message arrived from the boy informing him that he was out there and getting around, which otherwise risked blocking traffic with the car. The brown-haired man slipped the cell phone back into his pocket and ran out, immediately recognizing the car that was stopped in front of the gate. He pulled the hood up on his head trying to stem the damage from the rain, reaching the vehicle and opening the door, going up and closing it immediately. He hadn't noticed Killian who, on the other side of the road, was coming out of work by opening his umbrella and had followed him with his eyes since he had walked through the museum's wrought iron gate.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

-Why did you call me? - James asked at one point while driving towards his house, the tone of voice that wanted to seem disinterested. Peter barely smiled, his gaze lost beyond the window.

-I didn't feel like going to just pick someone up at the bar, I would only waste time. Besides, I'm not so stupid to go to the house of the first cute stranger I find in a bar- he replied with a shrug, - don't tell me you're sorry, James- he said, turning slightly to look at him.

-Oh no, not at all, I just wanted to try to understand. We have about two hours before my parents get home from work, unless they keep them more in the office- said the boy, brushing aside a strand of very blond hair from his gray eyes, the skin of a nutty complexion. Peter had always thought he looked like Barbie's Ken California version, but it was easy enough to maneuver as a person so it was fine. They arrived at James's house shortly, parking the car in the front driveway and entering the house. The brown-haired man looked around calmly, his green eyes peering here and there; after all, he had already been there a few times, mostly for school projects.  
He followed James upstairs, leaving his jacket and shoes at the entrance, the carpet covering the stairs and the whole upper floor, with the exception of the bathroom, stretched softly under his bare feet. He did not even have time to have a whole view of the room in which he had just set foot that James pushed him against the wall, assaulting his neck with his lips. Peter felt the other's body pressing against his own and the boy's hands resting on his hips, slipping under the sweatshirt and the shirt he was wearing, going to caress the underlying skin.The chestnut let out a slight sigh of pleasure as James felt his pelvis collide against his and the blonde's erection against him. Seeing his lips barely open, James took the gesture as an invitation to be kissed, but as soon as he tried to put his lips on the other's, Peter put his hands on his shoulders, stopping him. The blond looked at him with a hint of resentment in his gray, confused eyes. 

-This no. We can do anything you want but you don't have to kiss me, clear? Do it and I will make you regret it bitterly- said the brown looking him straight in the eyes, extremely serious, -we are just having sex, we are not engaged or anything else, so just fuck me.-

-At your orders- James simply answered with a smirk before taking off both the sweatshirt and the shirt below, leaving him with only his jeans, starting to kiss his neck again. He then went down with his tongue along his chest, then marking it slightly with his teeth, stopping to torture the boy's fair skin just above the rim of his jeans. Peter barely bit his lower lip when the blonde brought a hand between his legs, rubbing it against his nascent erection. He didn't have to wait long before James freed him even from the hindrance of his jeans and boxers, going to tease his member with his tongue, made sensitive by the two months in which he had not had a real relationship.

-How long have you been not fucking Pan? I thought you had a crowd of boys and girls at your feet- the boy said provocatively, earning a glance from above at Peter.

-Why don't you close that mouth, mh? -

-I really prefer to do something else- James said before taking the tip of the other's member between his lips, sucking it slowly. At that sudden gesture Peter let out a slight moan from his lips, of pleasure and surprise. The blond, who was kneeling between his legs , feeling it, took more of the other's sex in his mouth, starting to suck it slowly, working it with his tongue. Peter leaned against the wall, barely tilting his head back as a shiver of pleasure ran from head to foot. He hadn't had sex for far too long. He felt James take his erection deeper into his mouth, barely helping himself with his hand, his tongue wandering up and down its length. He was starting to feel warm everywhere, his cheeks slightly red. He closed his eyes, putting his hands through the blond hair of the young man kneeling before him, gently dictating the rhythm to be kept. James blissfully let him do it, enjoying the feeling of the other's member getting harder between his lips. Without interrupting what he was doing, he looked up at the brown, eager to see the effects of his work and what he saw made him even more excited than he already was, making it very painful to wear jeans. The boy had slightly parted red lips, from which groans of ill-restrained pleasure came out, red cheeks and a few strands of hair covering his forehead, an expression of undeniable pleasure printed on his face. With that vision ahead, he knew he wouldn't last long before making his boxers and jeans unusable. Reluctantly, he moved away from him, freeing the other's sex from the soft grip of his lips. He saw Peter open his eyes and look at him slightly annoyed, a look that transformed, filled with satisfaction, when his eyes rested between the legs of the blonde, noting the noticeable swelling that made a fine show of itself. 

-It takes very little to get you almost to the limit, as far as I can see- Peter said with a little smile, bowing his head slightly to the side, the usual spark of superiority in his green eyes. James blushed slightly, turning up his nose.

-I don't think you're in much better shape- he replied with a grumble as he got up. Peter laughed slightly grabbing him by the hips and pulling him to himself, taking off his shirt and starting to bite his chest, marking him in several places, making the boy moan with pleasure. In a short time he also took off his jeans and the underlying linen, rubbing his body against his. 

-I just hope that your resistance in bed is greater than your ability to answer me- said the brown before leaving him a hickey clearly visible at the base of the neck. Without giving him time to add more, James dragged him to the bed, locking him under himself, sitting on his pelvis, reaching out to open the drawer of the bedside table, pulling out a bottle of lubricant and a condom. He opened the bottle, wetting his fingers and sliding them along the boy's chest going down between his legs, going to tease his opening. In response, Peter let out a slight moan of pleasure. The blond then slowly slipped his first finger into him, barely encountering slight resistance, moving it so as to get used to it, adding after a short while two more fingers pushing them to the bottom. Feeling the third finger make room inside himself, Peter arched his back slightly, unconsciously pushing his pelvis towards James's fingers, unable in any way to hold back a moan of pleasure when he felt it touch a particular point. The blonde continued for another couple of minutes and then abruptly took his fingers away, making the boy just below him gasp for the sudden absence. He bent down to kiss his chest, sucking on his very light skin before making him turn with a sudden gesture making him lie on his stomach, rubbing his prominent erection between his buttocks making him sigh with pleasure. He stopped only a moment to put on his condom. 

-Do you think we will finish something by the end of the century? - Peter asked ironically looking at him just over one shoulder making James open with an amused smile.

-You're annoying even while fucking Pan, it's commendable- he said before grabbing him by the hips and entering him in a dry movement, making him gasp in an undignified way. For his part, James had to make all his self-control so as not to come almost immediately; the brown, despite having prepared him well, was extremely tight and hot around his member. He waited a couple of seconds before starting to move, pushing hard, slowly trying to completely enter him. Peter tightened his grip on the light sheets beneath him, his lips parted slightly from which groans of pleasure began to come out more and more frequently. He had definitely forgotten how rewarding it was to have someone inside him like that. James tightened his grip on his hips more, pulling him even more to himself, making him end up kneeling with his face partly sunk in the pillow, increasing the rhythm of his thrusts until, with a more decisive movement than the previous ones, he totally entered him. The blond moaned loudly with pleasure, feeling completely enveloped by the warmth of the other, bending to kiss his back at the point between the shoulder blades, making Peter shiver. He continued to move deeply in him, meanwhile going with one hand to tighten the sex of the brown, moving it up and down his entire length. 

The breathing of both was accelerated, broken by pleasure. The blond had narrowed and shiny eyes, entirely focused on the splendid sensation of his member that sank into the boy's body below him. Yet it was not enough for him; he wanted to drive Peter crazy with pleasure and he knew that to do it he would just have to find the right spot, which would literally show him the stars. He wanted to make sure the other man didn't forget that fuck so easily. Of course, Peter had said "only once", but if it was Peter himself who wanted it again...When the boy underneath let out a half cry of pleasure, partly suffocated against the fabric of the pillow, and arched his back slightly, James knew he had found his most sensitive spot. He continued to hit that precise point, causing the room to fill with the voice of the brown, combined with his own moans of pleasure. It didn't take long for both of them to come, James being the first followed shortly after by Peter who broke free into the blonde's hand. The boy grumbled as soon as he heard the other come out of him, more for the sudden absence than for a real desire to have him still in him. James collapsed on the mattress next to Peter, trying to catch a little breath, his cheeks slightly red, his skin hot. The brown turned his face towards him, his green eyes still a little shiny. -Not bad ...- he said only, a few strands of hair slightly stuck to his forehead, his chest rising and falling, still with a little trouble.

-Sayed by you I take it definitely as a compliment- James replied with a smirk before getting up with a bit of effort, pulling off the condom and throwing it in the basket heading towards the bathroom, the blond hair ruffled, the skin marked here and there by marks left by Peter. 

-I wash for a moment and then I leave you the bathroom- he said quietly before closing in the small room, opening the shower water by turning the knob on the hot side. He took about twenty minutes to wash, easing the smell of sex that impregnated his skin, then leaving the bathroom with only a towel on, passing another one on his blond hair, drying it a minimum. He glanced towards the bed to find Peter as he had left him, lying softly between the sheets, his face partially hidden against the pillow in a state of half-sleep.

-Ah, so you're one of those who after sex collapses- he said without malice sitting on the edge of the bed next to him, pecking back a glance from the brown, -ok ok, I'll be quiet, understood-. 

-Better- the boy murmured getting up with a tired sigh, going to the bathroom closing the door behind him, slipping into the shower and opening the water. As the drops of hot water hit him, bathing him completely in little, he sighed with pleasure; here's a good reason to have sex at another's home, hot water. The boy took it quite comfortably, basking under hot water, making the bathroom fill with steam. After all, at home he could not afford such luxuries. He got out of the shower practically half an hour later, his pale skin made just slightly pink by the heat of the water, wrapping a towel around his waist and ruffling his hair with one hand, so as to send away the excess water. He opened the window to make the room air out a little, leaving and returning to James's room, who in the meantime had finished drying and had changed, his blond hair still damp. When the boy saw him enter he smiled slightly,

-You took it easy eh? - he said but without malice or irony, his gray eyes fixed on him.

-Yes, I particularly like hot water, I can't help it- Peter replied drying himself and starting to get dressed, his expression relaxed while putting on his boxers and then his jeans.

-Do you want to eat something? Lunch has already gone by quite a while - James asked while the other was putting on his sweatshirt. Peter thought about it for a few moments, then shrugged and nodded. Why not after all? So he wouldn't spend money or he would have to cook. The blonde smiled as he came down to the kitchen followed closely by the boy, his hands buried in the pockets of light jeans. The brown leaned next to the kitchen counter while James started cooking, his mind wandering elsewhere. He pulled his cell phone out of his sweatshirt pocket without even really paying attention to it, unlocking the device to check if someone had looked for him during that time when he was "busy". He heaved a slight sigh of relief seeing that Shadow hadn't called him and hadn't written anything to him. He was safe once again. He didn't even notice that James had stopped for a moment, looking intently at him.

-Something happened? - asked the blond making the boy raise his eyes from his cell phone and focus the green irises on him.

-Nothing, I was just thinking about something Felix said to me the other day, nothing special-, the chestnut lied with a disarming simplicity, shrugging his shoulders while the smell of breaded fish spread through the kitchen. Hearing the boy's name, James smiled slightly,

-You are very united, you two- he commented, lowering the stove slightly and turning the fish in the pan.

-Yes, we can say yes, we have known each other for a long time and I know that I can count on him for practically anything, but he is and remains only a friend- said Peter, putting his hands in the pockets of his sweatshirt, together with his cell phone. He felt slightly dizzy and didn't quite understand why; of course, after sex he always had a crazy sleep, he didn't even know why, but probably his current state was more due to the headache than from that morning didn't want to know to leave him alone. He ran a hand over his face, barely rubbing his eyes and temples. 

-You don't feel well? - asked the blond looking at him and extinguishing the fire under the pan, approaching him slowly placing a hand on his shoulder. At that gesture Peter barely refrained from glaring at him for the too much confidence that the other was taking.

-It's all right, I just have a headache. Do you have an aspirin? - answered the brown-haired boy, getting what was asked almost immediately, swallowing the tablet with a sip of water then putting the glass in the sink. They sat on the sofa holding the dishes on their legs eating in front of the TV, so as to fill a minimum the silence that had been created. Outside, the rain continued to pour down, rhythmically hitting the windows, the soft light of the sun heavily hidden by the clouds barely brightened the room.

-Can I ask you a question? - James asked at one point while one of the BBC reporters illustrated who knows what event. Peter didn't even turn, barely watching him out of the corner of his eye.

-You just asked one but ok- said the brown-haired boy, making the boy's nose turn slightly, who looked at him a little badly.

-What is it like to live at the Institute? - he asked placing his plate on the low table in front of them. At those words Peter, who was bringing the glasses of coke to his lips, stopped, lowering his hand and turning to look at him. Noticing his gaze, James almost regretted the question. 

-You just asked me what it's like to have schedules for everything, having to deal with a dozen younger kids, that sometimes I wonder what kind of problems they have and the fact that I don't have a sunrise who my parents are? Because if you really did, I ask you kindly to think twice before opening your mouth again or you will end up lowering the IQ of the whole neighborhood- said Peter, putting the last mouthful of fish in his mouth and placing the dish on the table.

-Okay, lesson learned, I have to do my business- James said with a slight sigh passing a hand through his hair while Peter stood up emptying the rest of the glass in one sip. He had answered more abruptly than he would have liked ... The little sleep was beginning to be felt. He put down his glass, slightly stretching, his eyes starting to get bloody heavy.

-Look ... Take me home ... I have a lot of things to do- he said with a slight sigh.

-At your orders, Your Highness,- replied the other, getting up and retrieving the keys of the house and the car, putting on his jacket and passing his to Peter. He brought him home without saying practically anything, still a little displaced by the particularly brusque answer he received before. Getting out of the car to enter the "house" Peter almost did not greet him, his mind directed elsewhere. He closed the wooden door behind him with a sigh, glancing around, finding only the two younger boys sitting on the sofa watching TV. He greeted them briefly, going up to the room, locking the door, taking off his jacket and dropping it on the desk chair, then advancing to the bed and lying on it, his gaze turned out the window. The rain had not yet stopped falling; on the street there was the usual coming and going of people, now made colorful by the multitude of umbrellas of people who had been provident enough to carry it with them. To the east the clouds were even darker, a sign that there would certainly be a storm that night ...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those wondering where the heck James comes from ----> In Peter and the Starcatchers series, an earlier group of Lost Boys include boys whom Peter knew from St. Norbert's orphanage, and who return to England with the heroine's family at the end of the prequels. This description does not concord with the canon backstory for the Lost Boys, who are not orphaned, but lost as babies.  
> James – James seems to be closer to Peter than any other boy at St. Norbert's. He serves as the leader to the Lost Boys when Peter is not around, making him the second-in-command (similar to Nibs).
> 
> His appearance is not described so I took liberties on that. With Killian things have started to mesh and now it will be necessary to see if dear Jones will be able to stand up to Pan or fall at his feet like a cooked pear.


End file.
